Insecurity: NUJ Leaders, Members Oppose Imo State As Venue For Delegates Conference

The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) is facing a crisis as members threaten to boycott the upcoming delegates conference scheduled to hold in Owerri, Imo State, due to security concerns.

Some of the leaders, members and elders of Nigeria Union of Journalists, (NUJ), across Nigeria have rejected the proposal for the venue of the hosting of this year’s national delegates conference.

According to our source at the national secretariat in Abuja  who preferred anonymity said that a proposal letter of one hundred and fifty million naira(150 Millon) has been written to the Government of Imo state  for the hosting of the delegates conference in Owerri.
In view of this development, members who have started mobilizing for its rejection across the nooks and crannies of Nigeria ahead of NUJ NEC meeting in Ibadan on Friday.

According to the source, the delegates conference may be boycotted due to insecurity in the region, as what happened three years ago in Umuahia, Abia state, where the president took the delegates conference to for his reelection in 2021. 

The source also added that it is not only south east zone that made up of NUJ,  there are other zones that can conviniently  host the delegates conference that are safe in terms of insecurity. 

It stressed that south east zone  cannot hold delegates conference of NUJ back to back in 2021 and 2024, which according to law of nature, there should be justice, equity and fairness. 

According to our source from Abuja, the intention of the leadership of NUJ is that people will boycott the election if taken to the south east zone  citing insecurity so that his proteges can win the elections without any contest as what happened three years ago when the northerners boycotted the elections in Umuahia, Abia state. 

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The source stressed that the south east zone is so volatile in terms of insecurity since 2010 when four  journalists from Lagos were kidnapped in Aba – Umuahia road on their way from NEC meeting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, while Mr Ahmed Gulak, former special adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan was brutally killed in Imo state by unknown gunmen. Also three weeks ago, nine soldiers were killed in Imo state, so, security in south east is so tense that it will be unwise to move Journalists to south east in this trying period.

The source therefore charged all delegates to the NEC meeting to reject such proposal if put forward during the deliberations and consider other zones or preferably Abuja, which is central to all the states in the federation where all state councils can cater for their delegates in terms of transportation, accommodation and feeding if the national secretariat of NUJ fails to sponsor its delegates conference.