The leadership of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) yesterday tasked President Muhammadu Buhari in his appointments during his second term in office.
The NUJ asked the president to comply with the principle of federal character in appointing people into his government.
National President of the NUJ, Chris Isiguzo, stated this when he led members of his executive to meet with President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said that there was the need for the President to ensure that all parts of the country were carried along in the scheme of things.
Speaking to State House Correspondents after the meeting, Isiguzo said that there was the need for the President to correct some perceived flaws in his first term, emphasising that his re-election offered him another opportunity to right the wrongs of his first term.
The national president also asked Buhari to stem the tide of insecurity in the North-East and North-West, where insurgency and banditry had continued to threaten the security of lives and property of citizens.
He added that the delegation also made demand on the President regarding press freedom to enable journalists operate freely without any fear of harassment or molestation in conformity with the principles of democracy.
He said: “Basically, we have come to congratulate the president on his re-election as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and of course, to also make it clear to him that to whom so much is given, much more is expected from him.
“He’s gone through the first-four years; by May 29, he will be through with that and he’s been given yet another mandate to lead Nigeria for another four years and we also made it clear to him that some of the major challenges that we have had in the past four years, this is an opportunity for him to correct them, especially when it comes to the area of inclusiveness, carrying everybody along.
“That is the spirit of federal character principle that is enshrined in our constitution; that he’s got to carry people along, and of course, we talked about the security problem that we have, not just in the North-East, but even the banditry in the North-West, in Katsina, Zamfara and Sokoto states.
“We raised that issue and of course, we challenged him to ensure that the security architecture is overhauled to be able to effectively tackle these challenges. We commended him for the fact that as we speak now, there is no part of the country that is under the control of insurgents, which is good, unlike when he came on board. But, we also told him that it is very important that terrorism is completely stamped out, effectively tackled and not technically degraded.