The Press Secretary to Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani, Ibrahim Musa, on Friday, barred journalists from covering Northern Governor’s Forum (NGF) Meeting at the Government House in Kaduna, the state capital.
This was as the NGF members were about to arrive for the meeting at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House.
Musa had reportedly told the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) that, ‘whoever complain about it, tells him it’s me, the PS that barred journalists to cover the NGF meeting’.
Almost all journalists that went to the Government House were turned back disappointed as their names were not in the list Musa cleared to enter the venue and cover the event.
‘It’s uncalled for, counterproductive and saddening for his principal, Governor Uba Sani, known to be media-friendly, to allow him (the Press Secretary) treat media practitioners with disdain, disrespect and envy of such magnitude’, said a veteran journalist, Ibrahim Bungus.
Earlier, the state NUJ Chairman, Abdulgaffar Alabewele expressed his anger and disappointment on Musa’s attitude against his members, saying that he would not attend the event despite his name featuring in Musa’s list.
Musa was appointed during the immediate past administration of then Governor Nasir El-Rufai. A journalist, Mahmud Sani said: ‘He (Musa) is among the ones that misled El-Rufai to hate the media and descent on them with disdain.
‘He lobbied his way again into Governor Uba Sani’s administration, displaying the same arrogance, hatred and envy on journalists with impunity’.
In the recent past when the governor’s Principal Private Secretary, Prof. Bello Ayuba visited to the NUJ secretariat and promised periodic media ministerial briefings at the location, Musa changed the venue to at the Government House, and barred many journalists from attendance..
Many NUJ members had called on the governor to remove Musa.
‘We are calling on Governor Uba Sani, as a media-friendly person, to remove Ibrahim Musa because he is incompetent, disdainful, envious, arrogant and unqualified to handle his media activities’.
