By Yakubu Lamai
The attention of the Directorate of Strategic Communication & Press Affairs to His Excellency, Governor Abdullahi A. Sule of Nasarawa State has been drawn to a malicious report by Linus Oota and published in THE NATION Newspaper of Saturday June 6th 2020 which is fast gaining traction online on such platforms as OPERANEWS.
The report originally written by Linus Oota alleged that: “Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has said that he is not bothered about being re-elected in 2023” and that the Governor sees his “four-year mandate” as “a period he deems long enough for him to contribute his quota to the development of the state” and that Governor Sule was: “ready to return to the US or Saudi Arabia to enjoy his life after his four-year mandate!”
This is a hatchet job executed with singular wickedness by Mr. Linus Oota of THE NATION Newspaper, because it defies all logic that Linus was the ONLY journalist out of over 50 journalists, who took the liberty to quote Governor Sule “out of context” and deliberately distort, “editorise” and misrepresent the meaning behind the innocent comments made by Engineer Abdullahi Sule during a Media Parley which he granted to over 40 News organizations.
The truth of the matter was that a journalist asked Governor Sule if he felt threatened by the fickle boasting and ranting by some members of the political opposition that he is “a one term Governor”, and Governor responded by saying that he was neither threatened nor distracted by such empty babble and political rabble rousers; but that instead, “he was grateful to the Almighty Allah for having given him his first four-year mandate!”
The entire report and negative slant by Oota is false and a deliberate distortion of the truth for the purpose of sensationalism, as a weaponized political propaganda to cause disaffection among the teeming political supporters of Engineer Abdullahi A. Sule.
We wish to put it on record that the report by Linus Oota is most uncharitable and goes against the letter and spirit of the CODE OF ETHICS for Nigerian Journalists approved by Nigerian Press Organization which states that, “truth is the cornerstone of journalism and every journalist should strive diligently to ascertain the truth of every event!”
We in the office of Governor Abdullahi A. Sule note that while everyone has the right to say whatever he or she wants, those of us with influence over audiences like journalists have the moral responsibility to exercise their free speech with vigilance.
A speech is like an open book that is being read out loud. There is so much knowledge worth sharing and interpretating; but our reporters should please remember that journalism entails a high degree of public trust and as purveyors of information, we should refrain from publishing inaccurate and misleading information but provide to the public, factual, accurate, balanced and fair reportage.
Yakubu Lamai, the Director General, Strategic Communication & Press Affairs to the Nasarawa state governor writes from Lafia.
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