The National Association of Veteran Media Practitioners of Nigeria, Imo State has condemned the closure of Ozisa Radio Station in Owerri and called for its immediate reopening.
In a statement issued in Owerri Monday by the President of the association, Ben Osuagwu, the group condemned in unequivocal terms the unprofessional closure of the Owerri Archdiocesan Catholic. Radio station by the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission – NBC.
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The Association President described the action of NBC as highly provocative and unwarranted adding that the way and manner in the NBC hurriedly shut down the Station portends grave danger to the future of the Broadcast industry in Nigeria.
Ben Osuagwu said that NBC acted hurriedly without proper investigation, due process and above all primitively without considering the guidelines and set standards.
He said that following the news of the Awomama massacre of 14 youths who went for one of their brothers’ traditional weddings alleged to have been murdered by the Ebubeagu Security outfit set up by the Imo State Government, the NBC should have conducted a thorough independent investigation with the various other security outfits to find out the veracity in the report.
He said that such an investigation will enable them to come up with the result if the report from the station is false or not, it can use the sledgehammer on them but if not, NBC should allow the Station to continue with its duty of informing, educating, entertaining, socializing, mobilizing the people.
Osuagwu noted that since the people whose relations were massacred said that it was the Ebubeagu Security outfit that carried out the dastardly act, NBC should have interviewed them and found out the truth.
He said: “the Security Outfits are meant to protect lives and property of their citizens and not to decimate them”.
He said that the era of unbridled clamping down on media houses has gone and smacks of unnecessary wielding of the big stick.
Osuagwu asked ‘whose interest the NBC protecting, to hide the truth, and expose falsehood’ adding that even if it was the DSS that murdered innocent civilians in cold blood, and the media exposed it, is it justifiable or unjustifiable?
According to him to all right-thinking citizens, media exposure of wicked, violent, and happenings in society is highly justifiable adding that it is when such happens that the media will be said to have lived up to its responsibilities.
Osuagwu advises NBC to focus on international modalities and adhere strictly to international modern norms on broadcasting and eschew the crude mundane methods they are applying in Nigeria.
He called for the intervention of the National Assembly to checkmate the mundane activities of the NBC aimed at gagging the media in this country.
He noted that NBC has in recent times tried to take back the media in Nigeria to the heroic pharaonic era.
The former National Assembly should compel NBC to reopen the Ozisa Radio station without further delay, Osuagwu concluded.
Similarly, the PDP Candidate for Imo East Senatorial District, Hon Uche Onyeagucha has observed with consternation the recent closure of the Catholic-owned Radio Station in the State, Oziza 96.1 FM, by the National Broadcasting Corporation.
In a statement by Onyeagucha through his Special Assistant on Media Prince MacDonald Enwere, h noted that this latest action by the oppressive regime of Senator Hope Uzodimma, after the gruesome slaughtering of fourteen innocent Imo youths at Otulu is provocative and disheartening.
The former Secretary to the Government of Imo State regretted that rather than appealing to God for self-cleansing, Senator Uzodimma further prevailed on the NBC to shutdown Oziza FM for uncovering the nefarious activities of his administration and exposing to the public, his slaughtering spree in Imo state particularly in Orlu zone using his Ebubeagu militia.
He described the instigated closure of the Radio Station as nothing but a calculated ploy by Governor Uzodimma to gag the press and other democratic voices in the State.
He condemns in strongest terms the draconian, strong-arm and headmasters/bravado tactics of Senator Hope Uzodimma to blatantly stifle free speech and independence of the press in the State.
He called on Imolites, the Catholic Community and people of good conscience to rise in solidarity against the further degeneration of Imo State into a state of lawlessness where democratic voices are gagged by the State Government.
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