Nigeria can get its leadership recruitment right with less emphasis on money politics, says a former Minister of National Planning, Abubakar Sulaiman.

Mr Sulaiman made the remark on Sunday in Ilorin while receiving the leadership of the Kwara Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ).

He said monetary inducement in the nation’s polity had made voters forfeit the opportunity of interrogating the capacity of aspiring leaders put forward to lead them.

Mr Sulaiman, current director general of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), admonished politicians to eschew monetary inducement of voters.

The former minister said Nigerians must ensure the right leaders are elected from the local government to the state level.

He also challenged the media to lead the campaign of educating the citizenry to be wary of repeating past mistakes in choosing leaders they entrust with power.

“Our society is undergoing serious challenges. We have responsibilities as journalists to educate the people and shape the narratives positively,” he said.

Mr Sulaiman called on NUJ to educate its members on the ethics of journalism and marry the fear of God with the profession’s ethics.

According to him, journalists should make it a duty to critically examine events in the country vis-a-vis societal goals and development.

“That shows how important the media is in the society. Any government or individual that wants to operate without the media is bound to fail,” he said.

Mr Sulaiman, however, commended the federal and state governments for the various measures implemented to alleviate the suffering of the masses.

He said these efforts demonstrated a commitment to addressing pressing socio-economic challenges and ensuring the well-being of the citizens.

Speaking earlier, the state NUJ chairman, Abdullateef Ahmed, called for a synergy between NILDS and the union in mutually exclusive areas.

The NUJ chairman emphasised the importance of stemming the tide of the preponderance of fake news, including its associated dangers.

(NAN)