The Honourable Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili has
re-stated her commitment to ensuring that Nigerian journalists earn a living wage.
According to her, “nobody is doing a journalist a favour by paying him his due.”
She stated this during the presentation of the report of the Committee on Special
Salary for Media and Cultural Workers in federal ministries. The report was
presented to Prof Akunyili in her office in Abuja today.
The Honourable Minister set up the committee in February this year to recommend
modalities for the review of salaries of media and cultural workers in the federal
government. The committee was chaired by Abubakar Jijiwar, the Director General of
Prof Akunyili lamented the challenging environment that Nigerian journalist are
forced to operate in. “That was why I set up the committee to help ameliorate the
pains Nigerian journalists face”, she said, further explaining that the problem
also persists in the private sector.
Earlier in his address, the Honourable Minister of state of Information and
communications, Hon. Labaran Maku, emphasized the need to critically look into the
welfare of the media workers having been opportune to chair a committee on the
welfare of journalists in 1992.
Maku promised to support Prof. Akunyili to ensure that the welfare of the
journalists is improved. .
The Chairman of the Committee, Alhaji Abubakar Jijiwa, who is also the Chairman of
the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) commended the Honourable Minister for
being sensitive to the yearnings of the Nigerian Journalists.
Alhaji Jijiwa appealed to media owners in the private sector to ensure that salaries
of their workers are paid as on time.
Samson Makanju
For: Mike Nwokoro
DD/CPS to HMIC
26th April, 2010
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