2027 elections: Kano Govt urges journalists to shun inflammatory reporting
Kola Oyelere, Kano
The Kano State Government has urged journalists to avoid publishing materials capable of inflaming ethnic, religious, regional or political divisions as the state approaches the 2027 general elections.
The government warned that careless journalism could heighten political tensions, while responsible and ethical reporting would promote peace, informed participation and democratic development.
The Secretary to the Kano State Government (SSG), Alhaji Umar Ibrahim Farouk, made the call in a speech delivered by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, Mustapha Mohammad, at the opening ceremony of the 2026 retreat of the Kano Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Kaduna.
The retreat, themed “2027 General Election: Legal, Security, Ethical Boundaries and How Media Can Navigate the Hurdles During Elections,” brought journalists together to deliberate on professional, legal, security and ethical challenges ahead of the elections.
Farouk said Kano’s highly competitive political environment could generate strong emotions, competing narratives and misinformation, urging journalists to ensure that their reports were guided by accuracy, fairness, impartiality, balance and public interest.
He advised journalists to exercise caution when reporting allegations, campaign speeches, inflammatory remarks and clashes involving political supporters.
“Statements capable of provoking violence should not be amplified merely because they are sensational,” he said, adding that headlines should not distort the substance of reports merely to attract attention.
The SSG urged journalists to give adequate attention to the developmental projects and programmes of the Yusuf administration while maintaining their watchdog role through constructive and responsible criticism.
He, however, cautioned that development journalism should not be mistaken for government propaganda, stressing that journalists must independently investigate government projects and assess their quality, impact, beneficiaries and implementation.
According to him, the media has a strategic role in the development of society beyond reporting events, including informing citizens, holding public institutions accountable and providing platforms for governments to communicate their policies and programmes.
He said these responsibilities were particularly important in Kano because of the state’s size, diversity and political significance.
“As the state approaches the 2027 general elections, journalists and media organisations must strike a careful balance between robust scrutiny of government and responsible reporting that recognises genuine developmental efforts,” Farouk said.
The SSG called on members of the Correspondents Chapel to document and report the physical transformation taking place across Kano under Governor Yusuf’s administration.
He said citizens had the right to know how public resources were being utilised and the extent to which government policies and projects were improving their lives.
“Where the government constructs roads, schools, hospitals, water facilities, markets or other public infrastructure, journalists should go beyond simply reporting the commissioning ceremony.
“They should investigate the project’s impact, quality, beneficiaries, implementation timeline and broader impact,” he said.
Farouk identified education, healthcare, agriculture, youth empowerment, women’s development, employment, environmental protection, infrastructure and social investment as areas where the administration had implemented programmes deserving sustained media attention.
He also encouraged journalists to continue drawing the government’s attention to the needs and concerns of citizens, describing such interventions as constructive criticism and an important contribution to development.
The SSG said the Kano media community had an opportunity to establish a strong culture of development journalism in which government performance would be assessed based on tangible improvements in the lives of citizens rather than political statements.
He called on journalists and other stakeholders to work towards creating an atmosphere conducive to peace and harmony before, during and after the 2027 elections.
“Election will come and go, our beloved city of Kano will remain,” Farouk said.
He congratulated the Correspondents Chapel for organising the retreat and sustaining its engagement with the state government in the public interest.