TVC OSUN CORRESPONDENT LIED, OSUN HEALTH CENTERSNOT SHUT DOWN, UP AND RUNNING - Dr. Akindele.

PRESS RELEASE 

TVC OSUN CORRESPONDENT LIED, OSUN HEALTH CENTERS NOT SHUT DOWN, UP AND RUNNING. - Dr. Akindele.

••• THIS IS JUNK JOURNALISM 

Osogbo March 23, 2025.

      Dr. Akindele Adekunle

 

My attention has been drawn to an outright false reportage on the operational status of health centres in Osun state which was aired on TVC last night. The report is not only a figment of the imagination of the reporter but conveyed the political sentiment of the TVC's reporter in Osun state, Mr Rafiu Hammed, which is against every known ethics of journalism.

It is quite disheartening that a journalist would sacrifice the ethics of his work, which emphasises truthful reportage, to pursue a political agenda by exploiting the TVC platform to deliberately push out false narrative to the public. It bears stressing that at no time was any centre in Osun state shut down as falsely portrayed by Mr Hameed in his report. This maybe why Mr Hammed could not provide a single video of a single health centre not operational during working hours in his false reportage.

Videos of the court-sacked YES or NO officials who are illegally occupying councils in Osun state visiting PHCs as they have no job to do, abounds on the internet, and we wonder how Mr Hameed missed any of these or could it be he pretended not to be aware to sell his false narrative. Only recently, Governor Ademola Adeleke toured some health centres in Osun state, which was widely covered by the media in the state, further puncturing the lies peddled by Mr Hameed in his report.

It is worth stating that health is a very sensitive sector, which should not be politicised as Mr Hammed intends to do with his false reportage. It is our considered view that the Management of the TVC to rein him in so as not to project the media outlet wrongly to the public because the essence of journalism is to truthfully inform people and  not to misinform them.

Even in times of war, health centres are not closed, and so, Mr Hammed's allusion that health centres in Osun state are closed can only be the echo of the opposition campaign of falsehood in the state in a bid to misrepresent situation to the public, especially those who are not in the state at the moment. That is dangerous and clearly against the ethics of journalism. 

We are afraid that Mr Hammed's attempt to politicise health may endanger the lives of the people, especially pregnant women who access the healthcare system free-of-charge in those centres, due to his false reportage. This is very unprofessional and capable of causing unnecessary apprehension for the public, which negates the essence of journalism.

While we don't have any issue with Mr Hammed political choice, we expected him to abide by the ethics of his work by reporting true events and not manufactured lies just to portray the PDP-led government wrongly to the public. It is for this reason that we ask the public to discountenance the report of Mr Hammed on TVC as it is false and doesn't represent the true situation of things on ground in Osun state.

Osun health centres are open and continues to serve the health needs of the public at the grassroot. In fact, the Osun State Government is currently implementing the rehabilitation of the remaining PHCs in the state to add to the 200 PHCs fully rehabilitated and equipped last year. So, there is no truth whatsoever in the claim that health centres in Osun state are closed. The lie is the invention of enemies of the state but the public are rest assured that they will not succeed.

Signed:

Dr. Akindele Adekunle,

Special Adviser to the Osun State Governor on Public Health. 

23/03/2025