By: Moses Morenikeji
Journalists have been advised to prioritise accuracy, fairness, verification and be conscious of conflict-sensitive reporting, as the 2027 general elections approach.
The Executive Director of the International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos, Nigeria, Mr. Lanre Arogundade, gave the advice in Ibadan at a two-day Seminar organised by the Institute for journalists in Oyo state.
Speaking at the Seminar tagged ''Interface With Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) And Editors/Publishers on Democratic Scorecard (Oyo State Edition), Mr. Arogundade, represented by the Programme Officer of the Institute, Melody Akinjiyan, maintained that objective reporting can strengthen public trust and contribute to peaceful, credible, and inclusive elections, saying that journalists should begin to look beyond electoral coverage and focus more on substantive, issue-based and citizen-centred reporting.
He added that reportage of electoral processes should not only be on how well the media can cover the activities of political parties and candidates but also on how effectively the media can interrogate campaign promises, document citizens’ priority concerns, verify political claims, monitor the performance of elected officials and provide the public with the information necessary to assess governance.
"As the country gradually approaches another general election cycle, there is a compelling need for the media to reflect on its responsibilities, reassess its approaches to electoral reporting, and strengthen its capacity to provide citizens with credible, balanced, inclusive, and public-interest information.
Elections are not merely about political campaigns, rallies, candidates, and the eventual announcement of results. They are also about citizens, their aspirations, their concerns, their expectations of leadership, and their right to make informed decisions about the future of their country," Arogundade submitted.
The IPC Executive Director challenged journalists to report issues that matter most to Nigerians by giving adequate attention to citizens’ concerns about the economy, education, healthcare, security, employment, infrastructure and other critical areas of public interest, adding that journalists must ensure that women, young people, persons with disabilities and other often-underrepresented groups have meaningful visibility in electoral discourse.
Mr. Arogundade disclosed that the Seminar was organised by IPC under Component 4 (Support to Media) of the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGNIII) Programme.
In a remark, the Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State Council, Akeem Abas, said a well-trained ethical and adequately supported journalist is better equipped to serve the public interest, adding that citizens deserve reliable information about the issues that shape their daily lives, security, education, healthcare, unemployment and the economy.
"Our duty is not to merely follow political rallies, defections and campaign promises. We must interrogate candidates' manifestos, test political claims against facts and track campaign promises against measurable government action.
But credible reporting begins with credible verification. We must strengthen fact-checking and verification to confront misinformation, disinformation and fake news," he advised. Oyo NUJ Chairman also said that "Speed must never defeat accuracy; sensationalısm must never replace substance: and political interests must never compromise professional judgment."
Journalists drawn from broadcast, print and online media organisations participated in the Seminar.
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