Under no guise must journalists be muzzled, says governor Fayemi

Chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum and Ekiti governor, Kayode Fayemi, says in spite of noticeable inadequacies, press freedom in the country must not be muzzled.
According to the governor, no matter the excesses being exhibited by the press, under no guise should its freedom be abridged or tinkered with.
“Even if there are excesses, the freedom of the press should not be restrained. We should look for other ways to correct these perceived inadequacies,” Mr Fayemi said.
Mr Fayemi made the assertion on Thursday evening at a dinner organised by the Catholic Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, Felix Ajakaye, to honour members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Ekiti Council.
The governor praised journalists for their struggle during Nigeria’s independence, and for daily risking their lives and jobs to enshrine democracy in the country.
“In the fight for our independence and the sustained agitations against the military for the journey to Nigeria’s democracy, journalists played prominent roles, even at the risk of their lives and jobs.
“The press stands for the people. It is the voice of the voiceless, though you may have some things that appear so terrifying now that we have social media because of lack of control.
“But you still have to go to the mainstream journalism to confirm because they have control and gatekeepers, who can be held accountable,” Mr Fayemi said.
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette

Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

NationWide
It’s too late, you cannot buy North with token appointments: ADC
The ADC concluded by urging the Tinubu administration to abandon what it described as “Bourdillon-style appeasement politics.”

Rights
Prime suspect in murder of two AAUA students is dead: Police
Police investigations revealed that N800,000 was transferred from the victim’s account during their captivity.

States
Police arrest two suspected transformer vandals in Akwa Ibom
Ms John said the operatives of the command apprehended the suspects at 5:45 a.m. on Thursday.

Rights
Amnesty International condemns police for arresting woman who criticised late Buhari over shiites massacre
Mr Buhari’s death generated reactions with some defining his legacy by the disregard for rule of law that characterised his reign.

Abuja
JUST IN: PDP governorship candidate Jude Ezenwafor shot in Abuja
Jude Ezenwafor, PDP governorship candidate has been shot.

World
U.S. mandates $250 integrity fee for Nigerians, others seeking non-immigrant visas
The U.S. State Department noted that the integrity fee was refundable provided visitors abide by the rules of their visas.