Why IPC trains journalists ahead of the 2019 elections

By Temitope Musowo 

As overt and covert shuffling of cards continue in preparation for the 2019 general elections, one need not be a prophet to accurately predict the burgeoning polical atmosphere when fully charged would not leave the country the same. 

These unfolding political realities informed the decision of International Press Centre (IPC) and its foreign partner, European union (EU) to begin massive training of journalists in Nigeria,  particularly political correspondents who will play critical roles in the electioneering process. 

The training which is targeted at political correspondents across the country started in Abuja, Kano, and lately Abeokuta, with not less than 140 journalists who have hitherto gone through the training. 

According to the Director of IPC, Lagos, Mr Lanre Arogundade who in his opening address at the just concluded southwest edition of the training at Abeokuta, Ogun State, said the essence of the training was to equip journalists with adequate knowledge about election reporting and also make them be abreast of using mordern  technology in reporting. 

Mr Arogundade asked the participants to count themselves lucky for being successful among about 500 journalists who applied for the workshop, he urged them to take advantage of the knowledge and skill acquired to improve on their job and better their lots.

One of the facilitators, Mr Bolaji Adebiyi harped on the need for journalists to be sufficiently equip with the knowledge of the Nigerian constitution, Electoral Act and party manifestos, so they could feed the public with the right information. 

Mr Adebiyi a media practitioner and media  aide to former President,late  Musa Yar'adua who spoke on a paper titled, "challenges of elections coverage in Nigeria : A reporter's account" , explained how inadequate knowledge of relevant section of the constitution can  hamper  journalists from carrying out their duties effectively, he therefore  enjoyed them to be objective and always verify their facts to avoid misinforming members of the public.

Also speaking as a facilitator at the two-day workshop, a political affairs analyst, Mr Jide Ojo explained the imperative of issue based campaign ahead of the coming elections  and journalists holding  politicians accountable for their actions and inaction instead of allowing themselves to be used as tools by politicians in doing their trade. 

Mr Jide spoke to the socio-economic statistics and human development index that should form the issue for political debates ahead  of the 2019 general elections. He also advised journalists to always set the agenda by raising these issues about Health, Job creation , Housing, Infrastructure,  Water and Sanitation, etc, especially when they go to interview the politicians. 

Another facilitator, Mr Obe discussed with the participants the necessity of using digital tools and apps in reporting, urging the journalists to take advantage of the avalanche of opportunities available  on digital journalism to solve the problem of poor welfare. He added that the  mastery of these social media tools could help journalists overcome those limitations that tends to limit their success on the job.

The participants who later broke out into group session made presentations on identified problems associated with transparency as related to electioneering process in the country, while proffering solutions to those problems.

One of the participants, Miss Blessing from Women Radio, Arepo, who spoke with our correspondent on her take on the training said, "I found the workshop very illuminating, the facilitators who are experts in the field were able to train us effectively and I must say I have been equipped on how to give in depth and accurate report about election. The lecture on digital tools and apps awed me and I believe it will have a positive impact in my reportage of the 2019 elections and beyond", She said.

The IPC Director  assured that the training outfit would continue to do its best to take political reporting to the highest level as part of the efforts to promote good governance  across the country.