Journalists have been advised to be security conscious and maintain safety while discharging their responsibilities.
The Vice Chancellor, Federal University, Kashere, Gombe state and President Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria, Professor Umaru Pate made the call during a virtual presentation at a two-day training for journalists.
The workshop organized by solace base communication in collaboration with Wole Soyinka Center for Investigative Journalism with support from MacArthur foundation, on investigative and data driven journalism on health reporting especially at the grassroots level, held in Kano.
According to Professor Pate, economic security, legal security, job security, physical security, among others, are key factors in ensuring safety and security for investigative journalists.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the Editor-in-Chief of an online newspaper, Abdullaleef Abubakar Jos, pointed out that the capacity building workshop would equip journalists with knowledge of tracking funds, investigating and ensuring effectiveness of primary health care in the country.
He said journalists have a vital role to play, by using modern investigative skills to collaborate with civil society organizations, and other relevant stakeholders to achieve the desired objectives.
“To check government spending, human resources distribution and availability of primary health care in rural communities”
In her paper titled ‘ Ethical consideration in Reporting Primary Healthcare in Rural Nigeria’, a lecturer with the faculty of Communication, Bayero University Kano, Dr. Rukayya Aliyu encouraged journalists to abide by ethics during investigative reporting.
In their sperate presentations, Ojetunde Damilola, Haruna Muhammad, Kabiru Saidu Dakata enlightened journalists on modern ways of data journalism.
The workshop titled ‘investigative and data driven journalism: Training on Primary Health care Reporting, attracted journalists from print, broadcast and online media.
KHADIJAH ALIYU
