Babalola to journalists: Guide Nigerians “to right political choice in 2019”

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By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan.
The Chairman of Pentagon Engineering and Jogor Events Centre, Engineer Femi Babalola has tasked journalists in the country to guide Nigerians “to right political choice in 2019”.
Engineer Babalola made the call in Ibadan while delivering a lecture entitled: “What Roles for the Media Ahead of 2019 Election” at the 40th Birthday of the Oyo state Correspondent of THISDAY Newspaper, and an Executive Member of Oyo NUJ, Alhaji Ademola Babalola as well the one year of an online news medium, Paragon News.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chieftain pointed out that the time has come for the media in the country to live up to their billings as the fourth estate of the realm by engaging in a more serious investigative reporting on the antecedents of the would-be leaders at every level of governance in the country.
“As I have said earlier, both the economic and social stability are functions of diligent governance and adept leadership. So your focus right away, giving your power of command and control as journalists, is to guide this great nation to right political choice in 2019. That patriotic role, dear pen pushers, begins right away,” he said.
Engineer Babalola who stressed that at this crucial stage in the history of Nigeria, the prostrate state of our economy and the lurking social crisis should be of much concern to the media declared that the media have a duty to ensure that the current economic crisis does not degenerate to social crisis.
“At the setting in of social crisis,we will return to the state of nature where both life and property would no longer be safe or guaranteed as a result of widespread anarchy that will result”.
Speaking, a former Editor-In-Chief of Nigerian Tribune, Mr. Felix Adenaike urged media professionals in Nigeria to always put the political class  on their toes “by making sure that we are duly involved in setting agenda for good governance, accountability and probity as demanded of us in the constitution (section 22)”.
Mr Adenaike while advising the political class not to be complacent that Nigerian voters are robots, said “this lecture is timely and should be emulated by all media professionals.”
Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Hon. Toye Arulogun in his remark cautioned  journalists against “blackmail and publication of unfounded rumours to bring down people in government”.
The Commissioner lamented that the era of investigative and responsible journalism is gone thereby calling to question the sincerity of the media in entrenching good governance, probity and accountability in the country riddled with graft and corrupt practices’.
The lecture was attended by a former Minister of Sports who was the Father of the day and an Abuja-based Managing Director of Westfield Global Construction Limited, Alhaji Wasiu Adebisi, who chaired the event,Mr. Yomi Layinka, the Special Adviser on Media to Governor Abiola Ajimobi represented by a Senior Special Assistant, Mr. Akin Oyedele, a former NUJ Chairman, Mr. Gbenga Ayoade, the incumbent Vice-Chairman of the union and a former Secretary, Prince Segun Adeyemo and Mr. Samson Tunde Abiodun, members of the League of Veteran Journalists, Lagelu Grammar School OldBoys, celebrant’s colleagues from across the Media Houses in Oyo state, SWAN, NAWOJ, Online Media colleagues, officials of Union Bank, FMBN, NUPENG, BayseOne Hotel, Fidelity Bank, among others.

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