By
Ya’u Waziri
The National President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Comrade Alhassan Yahaya, says Nigeria remains one of the few countries in Africa where journalists enjoy a measure of press freedom.
Comrade Yahaya made this known in an interview with Radio Nigeria to commemorate this year’s International Day of Press Freedom.
He said journalists in Nigeria operate with relatively more freedom compared to their counterparts in many African countries.
However, the NUJ President identified key challenges facing journalists to include harassment by security personnel, as well as intimidation from politicians and political thugs.
Comrade Yahaya explained that the union, under his leadership, is making efforts to address these challenges through improved training programmes focused on safety, as well as social, economic, and technological development of journalists.
Speaking at the event, the Director-General of Gombe Media Corporation GMC, Mallam Ibrahim Isah, also affirmed that journalists in Nigeria, including those in government-owned media organisations, practise freely.
He dismissed claims that government dictates the operations of public media outfits, stressing that no authority interferes with their editorial activities.
Also speaking, the NUJ Chairman, Gombe State Council, Comrade Faruq Muazu, said journalists in the state enjoy some level of press freedom, despite existing challenges.
He assured that the union will continue to work towards addressing these issues.
