WIKKITIMES will on November 26, 2022 hold a colloquium themed ‘Sustaining Democracy Through Fearless Grassroot Accountability Journalism’.
The event, according to WikkiTimes, a media organisation, would focus on fighting impunity and judicial theft and entrenching good governance through accountability, as well as breach of public trust for personal gains.
WikkiTimes noted that the event will draw audiences and participants from various scopes including the media, academia, civil society and the general public
According to the organisation, Jeff Kelly Lowenstein, a United States-based investigative journalist, and founder of the Center for Collaborative Investigative Journalism (CCIJ), and the Vice-Chancellor of Federal University, Kashere, Professor Umaru Pate, are among those that will address participants at the colloquium.
“Kelly who hails from Michigan is also the Padnos/Sarosik Endowed Chair of Civil Discourse at Grand Valley State University. His work has been published in The New Yorker, USA TODAY, and the Center for Public Integrity, among many publications, and has earned national and international recognition,” a statement released by Wilkitimes said.
A nine-man panel consisting of Ajibola Amzat, the Africa Editor at CCIJ with headquarters in Michigan, United States, Victoria Bamas, Editor of The ICIR, Dr Hamid Adami Muhammad, Chief Lecturer at the Department of Mass Communication, Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi State, will deliberate on the keynote delivered by Kelly.
Other panellists are, Abdullateef Abubakar, publisher of Solacebase and Dahiru Garba Muhammed, General Manager, Fombina FM, Yola, Abdul Ahmed Burra, spokesman for the Speaker, Bauchi State House of Assembly, Olajide Adelana, editor and newsroom mentor, Aloba Adenike, Managing Editor & Program Director at Dataphyte and S.G Idris Esq, WikkiTimes legal adviser.
WikkiTimes added that “Professor Pate who doubles as the President, Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria (ACSPN) and also a member of the UNESCO Network of Communication Professors would be a co-speaker at the event.”
WikkiTimes said it will also showcase some of its investigative reports published within the last couple of months during the event.
“In the past four years, the online media outlet has published compelling investigative reports that examined government policies and programmes, making an impact at the sub-national level.
“The medium in recent times is focusing on grassroots journalism, aimed at holding power to account at the sub-national levels. WikkiTimes has, in the last couple of months trained journalists in investigative and data-driven journalism,” the statement added.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M