Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has said that real freedom of speech as postcribed in the Nation's constitution will only be effective if there is freedom after speech.
The Governor, who was represented by his commissioner for Information, Professor Nnamdi Obiaraeri, made this known on Friday at the ongoing National Convention of Online Media Practitioners Association of Nigeria (OMPAN) at Imo Trade and Investment Centre, Owerri.
He called on delegates at the Convention to ensure their news contents are in tandem with the approved ethics of the profession, adding, "When you own an online platform, it is not for you to cyber stalked people and do all those kind of blackmailing things to get money out from people. The damage you can do is enormous".
"As a body that has come to stay, OMPAN must take its members on legal execution and educate them on the true practice of journalism, because there is a law that regulates what you do, what you must not publish and how you must not publish. If you are not prepared to play by the rules, you cannot exist in a civilized community," he added.
"Freedom after speech is the real freedom of speech. For any freedom you have to pay something for is not freedom. Freedom of speech is not a right to lampoon the integrity of others."
Governor Okorocha called on OMPAN to draw strength from the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), which have regulatory bodies backed by the law of the National Assembly.
Governor Okorocha called on OMPAN to draw strength from the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), which have regulatory bodies backed by the law of the National Assembly.
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