The FCT chairman of Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Comrade Grace Ike has called for a collective effort of all practitioners and other stakeholders in curbing the activities of fake or quack journalists, popularly referred to as Press Centre Press Corps (PCPC) who are denting the image of the profession.
Comrade Ike made the call on Thursday in Abuja while answering questions from newsmen after the maiden edition of Emporium Leadership Lecture and Awards event organised by RoyalPrince Media Services with the theme ‘From Clicks to Credibility: Digital Media’s Role in Deepening Nigeria’s Democracy’ as well as the unveiling of special 10th anniversary commemorative edition of Emporium Magazine.
The NUJ chairman said it is disheartening that some individuals who are not trained could constitute nuisance to the journalism profession and thereby portraying other professionals in bad light.
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“It’s quite disturbing, it’s a trend that we must all work towards, we must all fight; you and I have a responsibility as stakeholders, as reporters to make sure that we fight PCPC. They call them PCPC or quack journalists, because it does not help the profession.
“It is quite disturbing. So, we really need to fight it to the barest minimum, I mean put it down. We have the assignments to do so; not just me as the chairman of the NUJ in FCT, we just have to do it, put our heads together, all hands must be on deck so that we can get it right for a better Nigeria”.
Comrade Grace Ike is one of the award recipients alongside other well-meaning Nigerians including the Director General of the Voice of Nigeria (VOA), Jibrin Baba Ndache.
She hailed the publisher of the Emporium Reporters, Comrade Lukman Babalola for his doggedness and accurate reportage, which has earned him accolades in his 10 years of publishing.
She said, “I’m just so happy coming for someone I see very dear. Talking about credibility, accountability, professionalism, you see and you hear Babalola Lukman.
“So, for me this award isn’t a small feat, and it coincided with their 10 years anniversary. From click to credibility, we all know that is what citizen journalism is all about.
“People who are not really journalists are writing opinions, stories here and there, but we really need to have mediums and platforms like this which can actually educate and let the public know exactly what is happening, and it must be factual, accurate, balanced, and then you have to tell stories that will promote national development and not divide the society.
