Ijaw leaders, stakeholders back indigenous journalism, laud IPF at IduwiniVoice launching 

President of Ijaw National Congress, INC, professor Benjamin Okaba, Professor Benedict Binebai, Chief Mulade Sheriff, Burutu Local Government Council chairman, Hon. Julius Takeme and others have thrown support for the development of Ijaw indigenous media.

According to them, the current stage of the Niger Delta agitation is no longer bow and arrows, but the articulate media reportage of the under development of the Ijaw region to the wider society as voice of the under privileged people.

Ijaw leaders gave their full support to Ijaw community journalism at the official launch of Iduwini Voice at the weekend in Warri, Delta State.

In their various speeches, Professor Benjamin Okaba, President of Ijaw National Congress (INC), Professor Benedict Binebai, Chief Mulade Sheriff and Chief (Dr) Julius Takeme, chairman Burutu LGA have recognized the role and power of media in Ijaw communities.

In his key note address, Chief Sheriff Mulade, chairman of the occasion commended the Iduwini Voice newspaper publisher Prince (Dr.) Klintin Bibakefie and other Ijaw Publishers, especially the Ijaw publishers Forum (IPF) national President Comrade Ozobo Austin for leading the Ijaw publishers to have made Ijaw nation with a formidable force, by promoting the interest of Ijaw nation and Niger Delta in particular.

INC president Prof. Okaba revealed that the Ijaw nation has been facing series of challenges within one year, renging from political crisis in Rivers state, death of Ijaw national leader, Pa E.K Clark and others.

He assured that Ijaw nation will secure victory in the Rivers state political impasse, noting that Ijaw nation has not lost a battle from history.

Professor Benedict Binebai has admonished the Ijaw journalists to be factual, truthful and fearless in the course of their rrlortage saying that journalism started from Ijaw nation with late Earnest Ikoli whose spirit is in Ijaw journalists.

The erudite professor of Theater Arts of Niger Delta University during his key note lecture had propounded a new concept of journalism in the world which he described it ‘Avant Garde” journalism that is peculiar only to the Ijaw reporters that the news agents and the people in Ijaw nation suffer the same pain of injustice of political, eceonomic and environmental degrattion. That long pain has powered the local Ijaw community people to have stood up for challenges taking the bull by the hoen to report the injustices in Ijaw nation, after mainstream journalism had failed with distorted news report and skewed editorials intentionally to under report the large scale of marginalization in Ijaw land.