The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) national presidential aspirant on the platform of Garba Muhammad Project (GMP), Friday, expressed his sympathy to the victims of the flood disaster in Maiduguri, Borno State, even as he called on the relevant government agencies to, as a matter of urgency, attend to the needs of the victims swiftly.
Speaking with journalists, Garba Muhammad expressed his desire to work with government and other relevant agencies to see how succour could get to the people affected and their families.
“It’s my wish and desire to work with CSOs, government and other willing bodies to help bring comfort to the families and people affected by the flood,” he stated.
On his aspirations to become the next national president of NUJ, he promised to make the journalism profession more professional, attractive and to make the welfare and security of members a priority.
“For me, the profession has been bastardised by quacks, people see journalists now as beggars. This is not the reason I joined the profession. In the past, journalists were respected and honoured, that isn’t happening today.”
According to him, “there are media houses paying members stipends, some owe salaries of over three years and this body is supposed to be a union to defend its members.
“When elected, I intend with the assistance of my cabinet and cooperation of the State Councils, bring a sense of belonging to our esteemed members. After all, we are the fourth estate of the realm.
“We shall at the same time look into the into the revenue source of the union with a view to carrying out an all inclusive reform and transparency and accountability of funds including national and international opportunities available to the union.
“We want our esteemed members to understand this simple fact that it is not how long one claims to be in position of the leadership, but how much impact he has attracted to our great Union. We are in no way a liability, going by our track records of achievement in many of the positions we have held in the past.”
Continuing, Muhammad said: “Under my leadership, we shall call for the review of the FoI Act to include the protection and safety of practitioners.
“This review will no doubt address the lacuna in the law that has made practitioners vulnerable to attack and intimidation in the cause of carrying out their constitutional responsibilities
“We will also address the inability of the leadership to put strong enforcement of the pension laws and full utilisation of the vast land at the National Secretariat.
“How we intend to carry out these reforms, among others; including the tracking mechanism shall be explained to our esteemed members at the appropriate time.”