Lekan Otufodunrin, the Executive Director of the Media Development Network, emphasized the need for the establishment of a framework to regulate the Nigerian journalism industry. This proposal was put forth during a one-day training workshop on human rights issues in Nigeria, held at the Ikeja Local Government Area in Lagos State on Monday.
The event, organized by the United Nations Information Centre in partnership with the Human Rights Journalists Network, saw Otufodunrin urging media organizations’ employers to reconsider the journalistic code of ethics before making hiring decisions.
He added “The code of ethics is a means to guide our profession and not the law. One problem of the media is that journalists are not given a code of ethics before embarking on their profession.
“We must have an understanding of the human rights. It is important that as journalists we need to understand the law. Journalists in the country are not allowed to be members of the union of journalists and that is a breach of our rights.”
He added that journalists must be truthful in their reports in order to protect their sources.
“As a professional journalist, you need to be mindful of accuracy so as not to endanger anybody’s life in the process. A journalist should respect the privacy of other individuals except if you need to expose anti-social conducts.”
Addressing the gathering, Esther Balami, a Human Rights Officer at the United Nations Nigeria, emphasized that the fundamental purpose of the state is to safeguard the rights of its citizens. She underscored the interconnected nature of all human rights, asserting that the state bears the responsibility of protecting these rights without infringement. Balami highlighted that the state fulfills this duty by enacting laws and establishing security agencies.
John Eromos, a civil technologist, contributed to the discussion by expressing reservations about relying solely on artificial intelligence in addressing human rights concerns. He acknowledged the advantages of artificial intelligence in data gathering but cautioned against exclusive dependence. Eromos suggested that primary data collection should be prioritized for human rights issues, emphasizing the importance of utilizing tools to verify the accuracy of artificial intelligence, and he discouraged reliance on it alone.
