The International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos-Nigeria has called on the Lagos State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress to apprehend perpetrators of attack on journalists covering the party’s rally in Lagos today, just as it condemns shooting of journalists.
IPC made the call in a press statement issued by its Director, Lanre Arogundade. Arogundade said the alleged perpetrators of the attack should be apprehended by the party and be handed over to law enforcement agencies.
Arogundade reminded all political parties that it is their duty to ensure safety of journalists while covering their campaign activities. He explained that, “IPC hereby reminds all political parties that the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage obligates them to ensure the safety of journalists covering their activities including campaigns.”
Arogundade also calls on all journalists covering the on-going campaigns to keep themselves abreast of all safety measure adding that “they should learn to stay away from political activities where rival gangs engage in show of force especially through display of weapons. Journalists covering the elections should also bear in mind that they constitute dangerous assignments requiring them to take insurance cover especially from their employees.”
The IPC director also used the opportunity to “appeal to the security agents on electoral duty, especially the Police, to consider the protection of journalists as part of their responsibility as envisaged by and indeed provided for by the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage.”
In the same vein, the Nigerian Union of Journalists condemned the attack on journalists who were covering the Lagos State rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos on Tuesday, January 8, 2019.
In a press release by Shuaibu Usman Leman, the National Secretary of the NUJ, the group appealed to the federal government to take effective measures for better protection of journalists in their assignment.
The journalists affected by this attack were the group political editor of The Nation Newspaper, Emmanuel Oladesu, New Telegraph correspondent, Temitope Ogunbanke and Ibile Television cameraman, Abiodun Yusuf.