Mr Godwin Odemijie, Board Chairman of Nigeria Health Journalists, tasked journalists on Friday to focus more on mental health issues that are currently affecting many Nigerians in their reporting.
On Friday, Odemijie made the call during the two-day Annual Conference of the Association of Nigeria Health Journalists (ANHEJ), which was held in Auta Balefi, Nasarawa State.
The theme of the conference is “Improving Confidence in the COVID-19 Vaccine in Nigeria Beyond 2021: The Role of the Media.”
He advised journalists to develop the habit of writing more investigative and human-interest stories in order to reduce the rising cases of mental illness caused by today’s harsh global realities.
According to him, many Nigerians are suffering from mental illness without realizing it due to a lack of information on the subject.
“Mental health is a major issue in the country right now, but no one is talking about it.”
“Journalists must focus on mental health in order to detect it early,” he said.
Odemijie tasked journalists with delving deeper into current issues rather than relying on press statements to inform the public.
Comrade Emmanuel Ogbeche, Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), FCT Chapter, expressed disappointment that agencies such as those in charge of COVID-19 were not represented at the conference.
Ogbeche, who expressed gratitude to the international organizations that supported the conference, stated that many Nigerians’ refusal to accept the COVID-19 vaccine was due to religious, ethnic, and political factors.
“As journalists, we must walk the walk; we must demonstrate that we believe what we preach in order to encourage people to get vaccinated.”