The Abuja based Human Right group, Citizen Advocacy for Social and Economic Rights (CASER), has given seven days ultimatum to all private media houses with backlog of unpaid salaries and entitlements to newsmen across the country, or risk imminent liquidation.
At a Press conference organized at its headquarters in Abuja, the renowned advocacy group bemoaned the spate of nonchalant disposition of private media owners in the countries on the plight of journalists and their families.
Speaking at the conference tagged “UNPAID SALARY ARREARS, PENSION DEDUCTIONS AND ENTITLEMENTS OF WORKERS IN NIGERIAN PRIVATE MEDIA HOUSES; the Executive Director, CASER, Barr. Frank Tietie came hard on the defaulting print and broadcast media houses while highlighted its implications. He described such act as ignoble against Independent Journalism, Nigerian nascent democracy and the society at large.
He speaks: “The welfare of media workers in Nigeria is in disarray, and it constitutes a threat to proper news gathering and production in Nigeria.”
He noted further that such an unwholesome circumstance against Newsmen would constitute a breach from Nigerian citizens’ right to a free press in the country.
“It also constitutes a threat to the sustenance of democracy in Nigeria because Section 22, which imposes a constitutional duty on the Journalist to report news in such a manner that will hold government accountable to the people would be defeated:
“If a journalists can no longer hold its ground by being independent, but to now practice journalism based on stomach infrastructure.”
“A journalist is now being driven by who gives him money to determine what he publishes. This is a threat to democracy and affront to the right of citizenry to fair reporting.”
While issued a seven days ultimatum to the media houses to pay or face with various legal proceeding, Tietie, a renowned radio presenter said the civil society group will approach the court to seek the liquidation of the media organizations due to their non-commitment to the welfare of their staff.
“Therefore, why we sounded this alarm is that, workers from ThisDay Newspaper Ltd, Daar Communications among others, informed us on the state of affairs in those companies that they were being owed Salary arrears, Entitlements and Pension Funds that were deducted, but not remitted to their retirement savings accounts.”
“They now retired but nothing to fall back on. Salaries and arrears being owed, entitlement as a result of contract of employment they don’t have. Pension deduction for their retirement savings account, they don’t have?”
“Is it a crime to be journalists?”
“We are only asking a question, government is divided into three arms. There is adequate budgetary allocation for the three arms of government, whereas there are four arms of government because the constitution under section 22 says The Media has a duty to hold these arms of government accountable to the people.”
“We are only asking a question, who funds the media? Do we have constitution budgetary allocation to the media?:
“The media is currently faced with the threat of extinction, and we want to use the unpaid media workers arrears as a starting point in redeeming the constitutional place of the media, because it is the meeting point.”
“We wouldn’t wait again for another set of media workers to be chased away from these media houses before we start this round.”
“We are starting with the insistence that, due salaries arrears, entitlements and pension arrears be paid, or we would impose the proper provision of Nigerian law which ultimately will lead to liquidation of these companies, including their properties, cars, and buildings will be forfeited. n
It would be recalled that, the group had earlier written to the Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission and other stakeholders in the media industry for quick action. A letter copied to the Ministry if Information, Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Nigeria Press Council (NPC), Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria(BON).
