The Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Emomotimi Dennis Guwor, has called on journalists in the state to consistently uphold the ethics of their profession in their reportage.
Rt. Hon. Guwor made this appeal while hosting Assembly Correspondents during a thank-you visit to his office at the resumed plenary session.
He urged media practitioners to avoid allowing financial inducements to influence their work, emphasizing the importance of integrity in journalism.
Expressing concern over the infiltration of the profession by quacks who engage in malicious reporting for personal gain, the Speaker, who also serves as the National Treasurer of the Conference of Speakers of State Legislatures in Nigeria, called on the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to intensify efforts to eliminate such practices from the profession.
He condemned the growing trend of journalists being used to blackmail or tarnish reputations, stressing that integrity is essential for success and a fulfilling career.
The Speaker also commended the Assembly Correspondents for their diligence and balanced reporting of the House’s activities and encouraged them to maintain this standard moving forward.
“The reason why we are here is to better ourselves. That is the truth. All you need as reporters is to do the best and be the best.
“You should be ready to give the best to our people. So, I want to encourage you to continue to do what you are doing. You should do it without any form of bitterness or for pecuniary gains.
“For Nkem my Chief Press Secretary. I knew him as Assembly Correspondent since 2007 and I had watched him closely and today is CPS to Mr Speaker. People are watching you too and you can be picked for higher assignment by anybody.
“Experience has shown that within the journalism profession, there are some people whose interest is based on immediate reward, so, they resort to unnecessary blackmail. These are majorly quacks within the profession. They blackmail people in order to make it quick.
“But for you who are professionals, you may not get immediate reward as it were, but you should continue to uphold the ethics of the profession, because, there is always a pay time for every good work” Guwor Said.
The Speaker said the 8th Assembly under his watch would not in any way gag the press, just as he urged the media to always approach his office or that of any lawmaker in the State to seek clarification on any issue before going to press.
Earlier, Mr Andrew Ikehi, Leader of the Assembly Correspondents, told the Speaker that they were in his office on a thank-you visit for the robust and symbiotic relationship that existed between him, other lawmakers and the media in the outgone year, 2024.
Saying that they never had it so good, Mr Ikehi expressed gratitude to Rt Hon Guwor for all the efforts in making their Christmas and New Year celebrations memorable, including “the first of its kind elaborate hosting by his Chief Press Secretary, tagged “Breakfast With CPS to Mr Speaker”.
While suing for a sustained collaboration, Ikehi pledged the Correspondents’ unalloyed support and determination towards ensuring a hitch-free reportage in subsequent years.
