Kaduna NUJ Trains Members on Security Reporting, Says About 500 To Benefit

By Frederick Peters, KADUNA

NEWSDAILYNIGERIA: In an effort to enhance capacity of journalists in contributing their quota to security, peace and development of the country via responsible reportage, the Nigeria Union of Journalists, (NUJ) Kaduna state council organized a training for its members.

The maiden workshop which commenced on Thursday trained the first batch of members at the state Secretariat and is expected to benefit about 500 members across chapels of the state council.

Speaking to newsmen shortly after the training, the  facilitator, a security consultant, Col. Abdulkadir Zubairu Ahmad Rtd, said what informed the training, is the need to get it right while reporting security issues  ” to interact with people that manage conflict; they are also conflict managers by way, because they make reports on conflicts or any incident that happen within the Society, by so doing, they are also part of it” 

He said, the NUJ leadership ” felt training and re- training is essential to actually bring their journalists to bear with the current changing situations, with the  current insecurity happening in the country and reports emerging here and there, they need to really get their hands on deck and need to know the proper way to report and not escalate the crisis, but to bring it, if not reduce it to a total conclusion, 

” and that’s why the training emerged and I was asked to come and  interact with them, to share knowledge on how reportage should take place as far as conflict management and insecurity is concerned in our current political system” he added

Similarly, the NUJ Kaduna Chairman, Asmau Yawo Halilu, said the essence of training is the need to change the angles of our headlines and general news reportage especially on security issues, ” sometimes in  our reportage, you find out some headlines are indirectly promoting banditry activities, a few of us seem to report on the side of the bandits, though we know that, we are trying to tell the government or the major stakeholders about the happenings in certain areas,

” when trying to do that, some of us mistakenly, adding sentiments to their reportage try to give the bandits the publicity that they do not require and down play the role the military and all security personnel are playing in trying to see that they end this criminality, that’s why we sought support from relevant stakeholders, and we were granted and asked to train members” she reiterated.

According to her, about 500 members are expected to benefit from the training, ” and we are going to train all of the them, that’s why we are in consultations with management of all media organizations whether home based or correspondents, we’re reaching out to them to ensure that they release these staff( journalists) for us, so that they get trained”

She however pointed out that, the training is not due to the lack of knowing how to write ” but to improve on our skills of professional journalism, where we tell more on the military activities than the bandits’ activities; they are doing well, alot of  them lose their lives; while we go to home to sleep with our eyes closed; they don’t sleep, some of them don’t even see their families, so the essence is to change the angles of our stories” she stressed.