An associate professor of journalism at the Lagos State University, Dr Tunde Akanni, has asserted that political parties in Nigeria no longer have ideologies.
Akanni stated this in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, when he presented a paper titled: “Understanding Conflicts and Drivers of Conflicts”, at a training for journalists on peaceful and non-violent elections.
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The training was organised by a civil society organisation, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) in collaboration with the European Union Support For Democratic Governance In Nigeria (EU SDGN).
He said, “Ideologies no longer have place in our political parties. What is common among politicians in the country is deceit. All the politicians that make up different political parties are only interested in themselves.”
Akanni advised the media to always profile politicians as well as scrutinize political parties before reporting in order not to end up encouraging sensational journalism.
The university lecturer said: “As media men, it is our main task to ensure that we try to journalise, ensure that we profile politicians and scrutinize political parties so that we can do reasonable backgrounding that can help to discourage sensational journalism.
“We should ensure that our presentations are deep enough to help those who consume what we produce to take right decisions. It is not ideally for media professionals to support crisis.”
In his opening remarks, executive director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said the aim of the training was to enlighten journalists on the need to use their platforms to douse tension that cause election-related violence in the country.
Oluwafemi said: “That is why our engagement here in Port Harcourt is extremely important in terms of engaging the media on how we can use our platforms to douse the tension and not in anyway willing or wittingly contribute to the tension thereby causing more election related violence in the country.”