Enugu State Governor Mbah calls on media and authorities to rely on facts — Premium Times Nigeria

Enugu State Governor in Nigeria Peter Mbah called on the government and the media to rely on verified facts, evidence, investigations and context. During the 22nd All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC) in Enugu, he said that the authorities must be transparent and accountable for the results of their work, while the press must independently scrutinize their actions. Premium Times Nigeria reports.

Independent scrutiny

More than 300 editors attended the conference organized by the Nigerian Guild of Editors. According to Mbah, relations between the authorities and the media should not be reduced solely to confrontation: the institutions have different functions but a shared duty to serve the citizens of Nigeria.

The governor called on journalists to develop investigative journalism, particularly given the spread of artificial intelligence technologies. He noted that AI can be used to create fake photographs, clone voices and manipulate videos in ways that can make people appear to say things they did not actually say.

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Mbah stressed that journalism should not seek evidence to support an already formed position. Instead, he said, journalists should analyze evidence, verify different claims, establish the circumstances of events and report the findings. He also said that this standard should apply equally to the authorities and their critics.

Administration projects

Mbah also listed projects of his administration. According to him, more than 1,500 kilometers of roads and more than 7,000 classrooms have been built or reconstructed in the state. Among the initiatives, he named Smart Green Schools and Type 2 primary healthcare centers in 260 wards of the state.

The governor also mentioned water infrastructure, new transport terminals, compressed natural gas buses, Enugu Air, the revival of non-operational enterprises and the development of a new city. He invited editors to independently assess the changes in Enugu by speaking with residents and city workers. During the opening ceremony, the Nigerian Guild of Editors presented Mbah with an award for good governance.