...as Channels delete false report on court ruling

As Channels Television deleted a post where it claimed that the Federal High Court in Benin City had granted an order restraining the APC and its National Chairman from conducting the party's internal primary after its earlier report was debunked by court officials and legal representatives as false and misleading, journalists have been told to be wary of how they report the All Progressives Congress primaries and governorship election.

The proceeding, according to official court records, ended with the court ordering the maintenance of status quo after it refused appeals by the legal representatives of Governor Godwin Obaseki and his loyalists who filed the injunction to grant the interim restraining order.

The judge, acknowledging the urgency and sensitivity of the matter, set Thursday, June 11 as the date for a full hearing before a verdict can be delivered on the matter.

Reacting to the development, Prince John Mayaki, the Director of Communication and Media, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu Campaign Organization said: "The error from otherwise thorough Channels TV is another reminder that media organizations must be careful in its reporting of issues surrounding the conduct of the APC primary and Governorship election in Edo State."

"For long, we have raised alarm on the formation of a propaganda unit by the embattled Governor, Mr. Governor Godwin Obaseki, where fake news and other misleading reports are manufactured and strategically distributed across the internet and forwarded to journalists with the intention of presenting a false representation of things."

"To avoid being caught in the web of the Governor's destructive and unprincipled politics, we are repeating our advice to media bodies and journalists to be careful in their management of any information from the Governor's camp and ensure proper checks before publishing."

"As court records show, Governor Obaseki failed today again at the Federal High Court in Benin. His interim injunction seeking to restrain the APC from conducting its primary because he is afraid of losing was refused by the court and a status quo was ordered. The court has said all sides involved should come and present their arguments on Thursday, June 11, and as people backed by the truth and legal facts, we confidently anticipate the date."

Lalasticlala Seun Mynd44