Journalists urged to partner NGO for rapid economic development

African Heritage Institution (AfriHeritage), a civil society organisation, has urged journalists to partner with NonGovernmental Organisations NGO), and Civil Society Organisations (CSO), for rapid socio-economic development.
The Executive Director of Afri-Heritage, Prof.
Ufo Okeke-Uzodike, madethe call in Enugu at an Afri-Heritage Breakfast Dialogue with the media workers.
Okeke-Uzodike noted that across countries and societies throughout modern history, the media had shaped or influenced social discourses and defined relationships between nation-states and their people.
According to him, where the media are cowardly and pliant, human rights abuses and dictatorships take deep root and become widespread as governments become hegemonic.
Where the media understand and defend their social mandate and responsibility to their public, human rights are respected and individuals and communities are free; whole societies prosper; and democracy is embedded.The net effect of the work of the media regardless of regime type is to nurture or strengthen good governance and democratic practice through its commitment to, and defense of, the public interest,’’ he said.
According to him, in essence, the role of the media in society is massive and transverses all spheres of life and human endeavour.
Afri-Heritage and other non-profit organizations cannot thrive or even try to do their work reasonably well without effective partnership with the media.I speak about partnership because the media also needs CSOs and NGOs to do their work more effectively,’’ he said.
Okeke-Uzodike tasked journalists to be committed and focused on the quest for the truth without fear or favour.
Delivering a key note lecture at the occasion, the Head of Department, (HOD), Mass Communication, Enugu state University of Science and Technology (ESUT) Enugu, Dr.
Chris Ngwu stressed on the important role the media play in the society pointing out that it is the duty of the media to hold governments accountable in order to ensure good governance.
Ngwu who spoke on the lecture titled: “Leadership and Good Governance: Need for responsible reportage,” noted that the media as the watchdog of the society has an onerous task of informing and educating the massesthrough accurate, unbiased reportage.
He counseled that the media has a sacred role of informing the masses on the goings on in the society and for this reason should shun unprofessional act that might jeopardize their role as the Fourth Estate of the Realm.
Ngwu urged the media to use their unassailable role to fight corruption, cronyism as well as collusions in the society with a view to sanitizing the society.
“Holding government accountable is the responsibility of the media.
The media holds a sacred duty to educate the masses,” he said.