Abuja, Nigeria – Nigeria’s leading journalists’ union has strongly condemned the alleged harassment and verbal assault of a female reporter by a senior railway official while she was covering a train derailment. The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), FCT Council, is demanding an immediate public apology from the Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Kayode Opeifa.
The incident took place on Wednesday as Ladi Bala, a transport reporter with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), was reporting live from the scene of the Abuja-Kaduna train derailment. According to the NUJ, eyewitnesses stated that Mr. Opeifa disrupted her broadcast, verbally abused her with insults such as “stupid” and “foolish woman,” and ordered security personnel to forcibly remove her from the area.
In a statement, the NUJ described Mr. Opeifa’s conduct as “dehumanising, a gross violation of press freedom, and an affront to democracy and the rule of law.” The union also claimed that the official threatened to report Ms. Bala to her employer and the presidency in an attempt to get her fired and to bar her from future NRC events.
The NUJ FCT Council has reaffirmed its zero tolerance for the harassment of journalists, particularly women, and has vowed to pursue all necessary steps to ensure accountability and to safeguard the welfare of journalists.
Add Comment