President Bola Tinubu has counseled the Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of THISDAY Media Group and ARISE Information Channel, Prince Nduka Obaigbena, for launching Lekeelekee, a brand new social media platform geared toward redefining digital communication and difficult Western dominance within the international know-how house.
Tinubu urged Nigerians to help the platform and comparable initiatives that promote African innovation and strengthen the nation’s digital and media ecosystem.
The President spoke on Friday whereas internet hosting leaders of the Newspaper Proprietors’ Affiliation of Nigeria (NPAN), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) to an interfaith breaking of quick on the State Home, Abuja.
Referencing Lekeelekee, Tinubu described the initiative as a optimistic step towards strengthening Nigeria’s technological and media independence.
“Don’t thoughts the screaming generally. I’m glad the Duke is sponsoring Lekeelekee whereas we’re speaking about Google and exterior interference in our affairs.
“We are going to run with the persist with you and say ‘Nigeria we hail thee.’ We are going to survive the challenges,” the President stated. I’ll
Tinubu additionally pledged his administration’s help for initiatives designed to guard Nigeria’s media trade from exterior technological affect.
He disclosed that the federal government was already partaking international know-how firms akin to Meta and Google to deal with considerations about their influence on the Nigerian media ecosystem.
Past the digital media panorama, the President known as on state and native governments to make sure that elevated federal allocations translate into tangible growth on the grassroots.
He pressured that the current fiscal reforms and the implementation of direct funding for native governments had created better {financial} capability for sub-national governments.
Tinubu urged the media to increase its oversight position past the federal authorities by holding governors and native council officers accountable for the way public funds are used.
“We’ve opened up the precept of federalism to the extent that native governments at the moment are getting their cash. However how they use it’s in your arms. Don’t bombard me alone; look out to the native authorities too,” he stated.
In response to the President, improved fiscal house has additionally strengthened the {financial} place of states.
“Equally the sub-nationals are having fun with the liberty. At present, no state is borrowing to pay the salaries of staff,” he added.
Tinubu acknowledged the troublesome {economic} choices taken firstly of his administration, together with the elimination of the gas subsidy, explaining that such measures have been needed to forestall {economic} collapse.
“On the time, we needed to confront the subsidy; Nigeria was teetering on the sting of chapter,” he stated.
The President maintained that the reforms had helped stabilise the financial system regardless of preliminary hardships.
“At present I can stand proudly earlier than you that we’re again from that brink,” he stated.
He additionally promised to deal with considerations raised by media organisations relating to import tariffs on newsprint and broadcasting gear, assuring trade leaders that the federal government would look at the difficulty.
Earlier, the Grand Patron of NPAN and former Ogun State governor, Olusegun Osoba, counseled Tinubu for what he described as daring reforms geared toward reworking the Nigerian financial system.
Writer of BusinessDay Newspapers, Frank Aigbogun, who spoke on behalf of the Nigeria Press Organisation, praised the President for sustaining a cordial relationship with the media and appealed for presidency intervention on tariffs affecting media operations.
He additionally urged the federal government to guard journalists and media organisations from the rising dominance of worldwide know-how platforms that utilise editorial content material with out compensation.
In the meantime, the Minister of Data and Nationwide Orientation, Mohammed Idris, reiterated the federal government’s dedication to press freedom.
He disclosed that regulatory companies had already begun engagement with main know-how firms over their affect on Nigeria’s media trade.
“All of the regulatory companies are already partaking the massive tech, Meta and Google. The President is not going to permit anyone to return right here, reap from our financial system and go away,” Idris stated.
He additionally assured media leaders that the Tinubu administration remained dedicated to defending press freedom.
“At no time has the President ever known as me to say go and do that or go and try this to the press. He’s himself a product of press freedom,” the minister added.
Deji Elumoye
Times Nigeria