The Periscope reporter
* Chapel Members To Boycott Fintiri’s Media Chat Over Police Brutality
* No skirmish, We Only Prevented The Uninvited To Minimise Crowd – Press Secretary
* Simply, Good Riddance, Correspondents’ Chapel is just one out of many under NUJ – Loyalists
Members of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists NUJ in Adamawa State said they would, as a chapel, boycott a media parley with the State Governor, Rt. Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, scheduled for Friday, over what they alleged as manhandling of some of their members by a security personnel, being ochetrated by the Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Humwashi Wonosikou
In a A press statement Thursday, jointly signed by the chapel’s chairman, Daji Sani and secretary, Oniimisi Alao, “The Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Adamawa State registers its displeasure over the manhandling of its members today (Thursday) May 27, at the International Airport Yola following directive by Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri’s Humwashi Wonosikou that journalists shouldn’t be allowed in to presidential lodge.
“Consequently, the Correspondents’ Chapel resolved at an emergency congress to boycott the media chat slated for Friday and other activities of the Adamawa State government.
“The Chapel demands unreserved apology from the Press Secretary Humwashi Wonosikou for the unfortunate directive”.
Members of the Correspondents’ Chapel are reporters with national and international media, both print and electronics,
The Press Secretary to the State Governor has however denied that there was skirmish between his principal and the Correspondents’ Chapel as the Governor joined by his August guests; his colleagues across the country were engaged in commissioning successfully completed projects in the state that are being celebrated with commendations by the citizenry, which the members of the chapel, for the most part, have no business reporting the milestone.
Wonosikou would articulate that as a journalists whose diligent and selfless service with dedication, served as propellers with which he flew, by God’s grace, to his present position, it would be uncritical to think that he would take to tyranny against journalism as a noble profession and journalists as noble professionals. It would amount to professional suicide.
Wonosikou said that he only prevented the uninvited to be able to control the crowd, perhaps in consideration of the Covid-19 protocols spelt out by the WHO and the NCDC.
Some of the loyalists to the Governor, heaving a sigh of relief, said “the chapel’s action is a good riddance… We’ll now know who’ll be beaten the most by the boycott.
“Do not infringe on other people’s rights to reserve your dignity. We shouldn’t be thinking ghetto before the August guests.
“Security officer has the obligation to enforce and maintain law and order; by so doing the erring arrogant will not be spared. Professional shouldn’t go unethical. You can’t force yourself into where you aren’t invited and think that the security will let you ruin his career”.
The loyalists lamented that after servicing the chapel with N2 million monthly, “hardly will you open a page of a newspaper to read any report about government’s activities. Adamawa state government is grossly underreported.
“Most of the chapel members don’t even have a platform, they don’t report to any news media. The boycott will therefore be ineffective because they have not been reporting. The action could therefore, only contribute in controlling crowd. Besides, Correspondents’Chapel is only one among so many chapels under NUJ”.
The Periscope reporter tried to here from the the executive members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Adamawa state but neither the chairman nor the secretary could get to be reached as at the time of the press.