Buhari tasks media on responsible reporting

President Muhammadu Buhari has charged the Nigerian media to be responsible in their use of the press freedom being enjoyed under the current democratic dispensation.

He stressed that from the outset of his administration in 2015, it was made clear that ‘‘press freedom is an irreducible minimum in a democracy that would flourish’’, adding however that such freedom must be used responsibly.

The president, in a release on Friday by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, congratulated the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) on the outcome of their seventh triennial delegates’ conference which saw the re-election of Chris Isiguzo for a second term in office as president.

Considering the formidable role the media play in shaping and influencing the course of events in any society, the president reminded the NUJ leadership that the country will continue to look up to their members for fair, balanced and objective journalism.

President Buhari urged the media to forge greater unity in the union, engage in productive dialogue to resolve any issue inimical to the progress of the association.

The president assured the newly elected executives that the current administration will uphold and unrelentingly safeguard the watchdog role provided for the media in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.