Accountability Lab Nigeria urges journalists to create awareness on data protection

• Igba Kuza Lafia

Journalists in Nasarawa State have been implored to use their various medium to create more awareness on the critical need to safeguard individuals’ rights in the digital system and reduce impact of its breach.

Speaking at a one-day Digital Roundtable Engagement for journalists and civil society organizations in Lafia,  capital, yesterday, representative of Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Associate, Accountability Lab Nigeria, Alfred Ijeloesi Agu, said enlightening the Nigerian citizenry on their digital rights is crucial, noting that fundamentally, digital rights are human rights.

Agu, who called on participants to highlight the need for robust awareness creation, noted that being silent on their rights is detrimental to social stability.

He maintained that the training session was aimed at  bridging the gaps in understanding the legal framework on data privacy, freedom of expression, data security and data protection, futher tressed the trend in Nigeria to the surge in cybercrime incident targeting personal data.

He charged journalists to continue to support the move in holding defaulters accountable for data security, protection and privacy violations.

In her presentation,

Storytelling Development Officer, Accountability Lab Nigeria, Blessing Anolaba, encouraged media professionals to rise against fake news, adding that it has severe consequences to national development.

She cautioned the participants to stand firm for their rights to stern social injustices, harassment, intimidation and extortion by government and non-state actors.

Journalists and members of the CSOs who were present lauded the Accountability Lab Nigeria for enlightening them with current developments in the digital realm, pledging to contribute meaningfully to the growth of the nation’s digital system.

Data protection has been on the front burner with the issues surrounding the nation’s Cybercrime Act, leading to the torture, harassment and detention of citizens particularly journalists that sparked public outrage recently.