As controversy rages over the alleged attempt to blackmail the Minister of the FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed and other senior officials of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, by MallamTukurMamu, publisher of the Desert Herald Newspaper, over the purported publication of a book chronicling corruption in the system, some media professionals from the South-South based in the territory have taken up issues with Mamu.
In a statement in Abuja, the group under South-South Media Alliance, SoSMA, say ethics of journalism is fundamental, therefore any attempt at blackmail and extortion should be frowned upon.
Find below the press statement:
SOUTH-SOUTH MEDIA ALLIANCE
SoSMA…Balance & Equity
Rd 212 Block 15 Supreme Court, FHA Karu, Abuja
ON THE MATTER OF ALLEGED BLACKMAIL, EXTORTION, DEFAMATION AND LIBEL BY MALLAM TUKUR MAMU, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/PUBLISHER OF DESERT HERALD NEWSPAPER AGAINST THE HON. MINISTER OF FCT, SENATOR BALA MOHAMMED AND SENIOR OFFICIALS OF THE FCTA
There is consensus across board that Journalism is a noble profession as epitomises the very essence of truth, fairness, objectivity and balance. It affords the citizenry the right to know as well as provide governments with an avenue to create awareness of its policies and programmes and act as a barometer on what the people think of it.
In Nigeria, the place of the media is very critical hence the Constitutional provision (Chapter 11 Subsection 22) giving the media the legitimacy to hold government and its officials accountable to the people. The authority also comes with responsibility. It is in the light of this that we in the South-South Media Alliance, SoSMA, are highly disturbed about the recent controversy over alleged blackmail, mischief, extortion, defamation by the Editor-in-Chief/Publisher of the Desert Herald Newspaper,MallamTukurMamu.
As media professionals, we should be aware that a “Newspaper’s reputation is like that of a woman,” once lost to public distrust, can hardly be regained. It is in the light of this and due to our sincere concerns that we took to investigate and ask probing questions about the controversy wherein MallamTukurMamu has embarked upon the writing of a 284-page book allegedly exposing corruption in the FCT.
There is little doubt that corruption has undermined the sovereignty of the Nigerian people and in some dire instances, taken away their humanity. It is therefore noble and edifying when the media is in the vanguard of tackling the menace with forthrightness and strength of character. The worry in MallamMamu’s style of “exposing” corruption in the FCTA is his soliciting for alleged corruption cases to him. We wonder if he is now an anti-graft agency!
If Mallam feels strongly about the decay in the FCTA, though he resides in Kaduna and hails from Yobe State, is it not noble and professional for him to surreptitiously investigate claims of corruption against the Hon. Minister of the FCT and some other officials of the FCTA rather than this base and market-place tactics?
The “book writing” and so-called public solicitation of scandals against the Hon. Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed and some other officials of the FCTA is apparently to serve two purposes – blackmail these officials into parting with huge sums and or cause them embarrassment.
It is already established that MallamMamu from what we have thoroughly analysed from available facts from phone conversations between him and Mr.NosikeOgbuenyi, media aide to the FCT Minister, and SMS that MallamMamu was out to blackmail and make financial gain from his obnoxious strategy of calling for salacious materials from the public against the Hon Minister and FCTA officials.
There is little doubt that MallamMamu asked to be paid N15 million and forwarded his account number with the Kaduna branch of First Bank, Plc. Our findings are quite revealing and disturbing because they inexorably point to the direction of deliberate blackmail and mischief by TukurMamu, using the Desert Herald.
It is incredulous to read from some of his recent interviews that he sent the two text messages to the Mr.Ogbuenyi asking for payment of N15 million for advert placement and media consultancy. Nothing can be farther from the truth as there is no evidence whatsoever to support the delusional claim by him. After exhaustive inquiry as to his claim, we found to our chagrin that MallamMamuhas not tendered any duly approved proposal for advertisement or media consultancy to the FCTA.
Persuaded by our findings, we inexorably have come to the conclusion that MallamMamu’smuch publicised page book on alleged rot within the FCT Administration borders on mischief, criminal in intent, un-journalistic and defamatory. It is a trite fact that the balance, objectivity and fairness are the pillars of the journalism profession. And these are cardinal principles MallamMamu clearly lacks in his eight years of Yellow Journalism. We deplore this, and are not in doubt that all professional journalists with a clear understanding of the ethics of the profession will frown at.
Blackmail and extortion are cancerous growths journalism can ill-afford.We as journalists must at all times be above Caesar’s wife if the public must continue to trust us!
And for those persons who may be attacking the FCT Minister because he has not allocated land to them or awarded juicy contracts to them, our appeal to them is to be patient with him because he cannot possibly allocate land to every journalist or Nigerians.
In view of the foregoing, we wish to urge MallamTukurMamuto tread with caution in this latest attempt at blackmail, extortion, defamation and libel against the FCT Minister and officials of the FCTA. While we are aware that the Minister has petitioned the Nigeria Union of Journalists, the Guild of Editors and Nigeria Press Council, as stakeholders in the noble profession of journalism, we cannot watch bye while a certain publisher with questionable journalism background continues to bring odium and public ridicule by his desperate acts.
The FCT Minister and other officials of the administration need to be commended for their courage and steadfastness for refusing to be cowered through unprofessional conduct. We are not unaware that some public officials daily fall prey to a few misguided individuals who masquerade as journalists, we urge them to follow the exemplary conduct of Senator Bala Mohammed and the officials of the FCTA pencilled for blackmail.
It is about time the NUJ and other related bodies strengthen their regulatory framework in order to check the menace of blackmail and other vices before the profession is utterly rubbished. Government must do well to make an act that empowers the NUJ to register all who practice journalism like it is with law, medicine and other professions. Doing so will safeguard the profession from people who publish junk in the name of magazines and newspapers as well as put an end to the litanies of rag sheets such as that by MallamMamu.
We urge all our colleagues to distance themselves from this impostor who has subjected our noble profession to ridicule. A word they say is enough for the wise!
Dickson Preye
National Coordinator
SoSMA
