The Police Commissioner (CP) in Abia, Mustapha Bala, has called on journalists to be professional in handling information, so as not to incite or escalate the crisis, especially during the 2023 general election.
He made the appeal when members of the Nigerian Journalists Union (NUJ) Correspondents’ Chapel, Abia’s council, paid him a courtesy call in Umuahia on Friday.
Bala said that proper information management is one of the qualities of a good leader, noting that “There is some information that is not intended for public consumption, so you have to manage it at your own level.
“By managing it, you are saving lives and saving society. But if you drop it, you start a fire and before we put out that fire, the damage has to be done.
“That is why we need to accompany you in information management, crisis management and resolution, as well as problem solving.”
Bala regretted that there have been a number of complaints and allegations with social media platforms as a result of unverifiable reports.
For this reason, he urged journalists not to hesitate to confirm any information or complaint from the police before its publication, saying that “when you do that and professionally you are balancing your report.
He urged journalists to create synergies with the police for peaceful and credible elections in 2023, while describing them as critical stakeholders in electoral management.
“You are the watchdog of society, but you are our own mirror, please don’t reflect negatively on us,” he said.
Bala, who took over as PC in Abia just a month ago, called on journalists to bring the police “as we promise to bring you.”
He promised to carry out an open-door policy and said that journalists would participate in all the command’s political activities and operations.
He thanked the journalists for their good coverage during the recent visit of the Police Inspector General (IGP) to the state.
“The IGP, through his magnanimity, even assigned us some operational equipment, including vehicles, just because of the way he professionally handled his visit,” he said.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Correspondents’ Chapel, Chief Obinna Ibe, said the visit was to officially welcome the CP and seek a partnership with the command for the 2023 elections.
“We are here, we have helped other CPs before you to be successful and we are ready to work with you, so that you too can be successful”, promised Ibe.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Bala replaced Janet Agbede as Abia’s 32nd CP. (YAYA)