08:58 04/06/2015
Lagos - The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a nonprofit
organisation, has urged the new administration led by President
Muhammadu Buhari to uphold the rights of the media.
“As Nigeria
aspires to strengthen its democracy, your government must show that it
can tackle Nigeria's challenges, including the fight against the Boko
Haram insurgency and the use of terror tactics, but can do so without
compromising democratic principles, whose core elements include press
freedom and freedom of expression,” CPJ petitioned Buhari.
The
organisation added, “The success of the democratic government you now
lead will depend largely on the guarantee that journalists are free to
inform the society about their commonwealth.”
CPJ congratulated Buhari following his inauguration but insisted on the protection of the media.
“As
Nigeria prepares to enter a new chapter in its history, we urge you and
your administration to take steps to ensure that journalists are able
to work freely and openly in the country without fear of reprisal of any
form,” stated CPJ.
The media rights group pointed out that
Buhari, in his inaugural speech on May 29, identified insecurity and
pervasive corruption in Nigeria to be among your immediate concerns.
“You
also recognized the country's ‘vibrant’ press and appealed to the media
to exercise ‘its considerable powers with responsibility and
patriotism.’ It is our belief that a patriotic press is also a critical
press,” said CPJ.
“To achieve your objective in tackling the
challenges Nigeria faces, it is vital that your government prioritize
press freedom so that journalists may ask questions and expose
corruption at all levels of society without fear of harassment or
intimidation. Nigerians and the world must be left without any suspicion
or uncertainty about the transparency of your government.”
CPJ is an independent, nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide.
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