A university Don, Professor Dara, has charged media practitioners in the Niger Delta on their roles in liberating the Niger Delta region from the shackles of poverty occasioned by long years of neglect.
The advice was given during a town hall meeting organized by the National Point Newspaper, with support from the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ)and the MacArthur Foundation.
The meeting which held at Wellington Hotel ,Effurun, Delta State, had as its theme, ” Ensuring Electoral Accountability and Inclusive Governance.”
Professor Dara , while urging the media to focus more on reconstructing the image of the Niger Delta through their reportage, said that, that was one of the ways to reposition the region to benefit from the dividends of democracy.
The academic who identified structural, ideological, political, economic, social and cultural problems as elements to appraise elections, stressed that , the “media will be central to liberating the Niger Delta”.
He explained that 90 per cent of political governance belongs to media propaganda, stressing that, political “parties are part of the structural problems” bedeviling the Niger Delta region, and called on stakeholders to form one.
Speaking further, the professor stated that, “money is the principal concern why elections can not be free and fair” in Nigeria, describing the situation as “frightening”.
On her part, retired Professor of Oral Literature and Folklore, Godwin Sarah, during her presentation , said, reconstructing the image of the Niger Delta is one of the ways to reposition the region to enjoy the dividends of democracy.
In her presentation, a lecturer at the Delta State University (DELSU), Professor Rose Aziza, harped on the need to get everyone Involved; emphasizing that, women, youths, persons with disabilities must get involved.
She said:”We must reconcile and agree to live and work together and promote indigenous languages to ensure inclusive governance”.
While admonishing the people of the oil-rich region on the need to be united, Dr. Aziza said , most times other people benefit when the region is in crisis.
