By Tina George, Minna
The state council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), has set up an awareness center to coordinate the reportage of COVID-19 by Journalists in the state.
In a statement made available on Friday, the Chairman of the Council, Abdul Idris, said that the center would on daily basis, educate the people of the state through various media outlets with the core objective of raising awareness, eschewing rumors and embellished stories.
Abdul further said that the Center would ensure the safety of Journalists in the state stressing that the Council’s initiative is independent of the state’s Taskforce on COVID-19.
“The initiative is to bridge the information gap between practicing journalists in the state and stakeholders. We deemed it necessary to take the initiative as our social responsibility to the people who are at the receiving end if they are not properly educated on COVID-19.
“Regrettably, experiences from the spread of COVID-19 have shown that if the people are not well sensitized, it easily leads to community spread of the virus.
“It is unfortunate that the state has recorded two confirmed cases, but it will be fatal if it is allowed to spread in our communities. On this premise as gatekeepers, the NUJ decided to mobilize her members to contribute actively towards curtailing the spread of COVID-19 in the state”, the statement read.
The Chairman urged the general public is to update the center with verifiable information on happenings within their localities stating that major stakeholders are advised to leverage on this initiative to enhance engagements for better awareness against the spread of the virus in the state.
