By Adewole Kehinde
The Guardian Newspaper on Sunday, 2nd January 2022 reported that a section of the Port Harcourt refinery in Eleme Local Council Area of Rivers State, currently being renovated at an estimated cost of $5b dollars, was yesterday gutted by fire.
I think the Guardian Newspaper needs to send its reporter back to school. I said this because the cost for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery is $1.5b against the false $5b published by Guardian Newspaper.
Verification is a discipline that lies at the heart of journalism, and that is increasingly being practiced and applied by other professions while Fact checking is a specific application of verification in the world of journalism.
Verification is a fundamental practice that enables fact checking.
I don’t know what it will cost the reporter to do a simple Google search on the cost of the timely rehabilitation of the Refinery.
The worst part of it is that an Editor passed the report for publication. What a great disaster!
Journalists should be as transparent as possible about sources and methods so audiences can make their own assessment of the information.
Even in a world of expanding voices, “getting it right” is the foundation upon which everything else is built – context, interpretation, comment, criticism, analysis and debate.
I must commend the NNPC Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Garba Deen Muhammad, for coming out with a press release on time to explain that the incident, which was contained in less than two hours, was caused by a spark while a 33,000 litre truck was discharging naphtha into a tank at the PHRC.
The NNPC Spokesperson further said that the management of the refinery led by the Managing Director, who was at the scene supervising the operation, immediately mobilized the safety structure at the PHRC and with support from the Federal Fire service, successfully brought the fire under control.
Verification is important for journalists as it helps build readers’ trust helping to establish a brand.
Getting the correct facts takes time and the last thing a journalist wants to do is post inaccurate information.
If there is inaccuracy or misinformation the best solution is for a journalist to quickly correct their mistake with the correct information.
Oftentimes this helps to gain even more trust as it shows the journalist is committed to providing the correct information.
Verification is more important than being the first one to break the news and journalists should not feel pressured to be first, but should feel pressured to be verified.
I hope the Guardian Newspaper will quickly correct this mistake with the correct information.
Adewole Kehinde is a Public Affairs Analyst based in Abuja and can be reached via 08166240846, 08123608662. E-mail: kennyadewole@gmail.com
