The National President of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Chris Isiguzo, has lamented that the media is the worst hit by COVID-19 pandemic.
Isiguzo said this at the weekend, while addressing members of the Lagos State Council of the union in Ikeja, Lagos. He also spoke during his visit to the Oyo State Council of the union at the Press Centre, Ibadan.
He said: “I promised some time ago that we are going to ensure the establishment of stabilisation fund. Now, we have a committee in place. We set up this fund for journalists that might have issues, newspaper and broadcast stations that have challenges, and the fund will be launched in the next couple of months.
“The effect of coronavirus made some media houses to lay off some of our colleagues.
“But, as a remedy, we have set up a committee in conjunction with Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) and NUJ to rescue media houses from sacking workers.”
Isiguzo said his administration had stabilised the union since coming on board in 2018, and that his leadership team had brought confidence back to the body and stabilised the Lagos Council.
“In three years, we have been able to take the union from where we met it and we have lived up to our mantra to rescue it. If we have weakened the fabric that made us strong, then there would be no union to protect them. The union has 37 councils and we are not going to treat one as a friend and another as a foe, as we are equal stakeholders in the same family.
Isiguzo, therefore, promised that the forthcoming seventh triennial national delegates conference scheduled to hold from October 3-5, 2021 in Umuahia, Abia State, would be free and fair.
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