Chairman of the conference, Justice Idris Kutigi
Tempers rose up on Wednesday at the National Judicial Institute, Abuja as journalists covering the National Conference were forcibly sent out of the plenary for alleged security.
The drama commenced when the Chairman Conference Committee on National Security, Albert Horsfall, requested the conference Chairman, Justice Idris Kutigi (retd.) to send out the journalists afore he could perpetuate his presentation. He cited security reason for his action.
Kutigi, who is a former Chief Justice of Nigeria, granted the request, verbally expressing the journalists should depart.
His shouts of “Disappear from this place immediately; Vamoose! Pressmen clear yourselves! The pressmen should vanish from this place! I verbalize Press men vanish, shut your cameras down, shut everything and get out from the gallery right now, clear and get out from there! Vanish,” vibrated though the conference venue.
Expectedly, the overzealous security men swung into action by chasing journalists away from the venue.
The development however vexed some of the journalists who threatened to boycott the entire proceedings of Wednesday.
Consequently, the plenary was thrown into discombobulation for over 40 minutes as the delegates were divided on the opportuneness or otherwise of Kutigi’s action.
Some of the aggrieved journalists verbally expressed they felt disconcerted with the dictatorial manner with which Kutigi injuctively authorized them out of the plenary.
A journalists who preferred anonymity, verbalized they were not opposed to being sent out of the confab on the grounds that delegates wanted to commence an executive session, but that the chairman should have been more diplomatic and civil in his language and approach.
A delegate from the South-West and bellwether of the Civil Society Organisation, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), who met some of the journalists outside the premises, verbalized since it was the directive of the chairman, newsmen were in liberty to boycott the session.
As the media professionals were criticising Kutigi over his actions, some delegates who realised the mistake of the chairman came outside to appeal to the media men, verbalizing he had apologised to the journalists.
Among those who came to intervene and apologise on Kutigi’s behalf were the Chairman of DAAR Communications Plc, Chief Raymond Dokpesi; a former President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Lanre Ogundipe; Senator Florence Ita Giwa, ex-NUJ President, Mallam Sani Zoro, as well as some delegates representing the CSOs at the conference.
The Deputy Chairman of the conference, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, who withal came outside to appeal to the journalists, verbally expressed the committee chairman requested for the ambulation out, integrating that he had come to apologise on behalf of the conference.
He verbalized, “Please don’t forsake us half way, I emerged from the conference to apologise, please your presence will determine the prosperity of this conference. Once again, please accept my apology.”
Copyright PUNCH.
