Professor Ifeoma Dunu, Director of UNIZIK 94.1 FM, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, has urged Nigerian journalists to move beyond routine coverage of political campaigns and rallies and embrace accountability journalism ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Dunu made the call while presenting a paper at a two-day media interface held at BON Hotel Platinum, Independence Layout, Enugu, where she challenged media practitioners to make public accountability, citizens’ welfare and rigorous fact-checking central to their election coverage.
The workshop, titled *“Interface with Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and Editors/Publishers on Democratic Scorecard (Enugu State Edition),”* was organised by the International Press Centre (IPC), with funding support from the European Union through the EU Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) project.
The communication scholar said the 2027 elections placed an important responsibility on the media to strengthen democratic participation, promote accountability and safeguard citizens’ access to credible electoral information.
She cautioned journalists against reducing election reporting to what she described as horse-race journalism, which focuses largely on political parties, defections, rallies, endorsements, opinion polls and campaign rhetoric.
“Effective election journalism must move beyond reporting what politicians say to investigating what they do, verifying what they claim, and establishing how their decisions affect citizens’ lives,” she stated.
According to her, election coverage should not be treated merely as a contest between political candidates but as an opportunity to scrutinise public needs, democratic rights and policy choices.
She emphasised that citizens’ concerns should determine newsroom priorities and shape editorial decisions before, during and after election day.
To achieve this, Dunu outlined a three-stage framework to guide journalists throughout the electoral cycle.
For the **pre-election period**, she urged journalists to ask critical questions about citizens’ needs, candidates’ promises and the concrete evidence supporting those promises.
On **election day**, she said the media should establish whether voters can participate freely, safely and fairly, whether electoral rules are applied consistently, and whether reported claims and incidents are verified on the ground.
For the **post-election period**, she called on journalists to shift their attention to governance and accountability by examining whether campaign promises are fulfilled, electoral complaints are resolved transparently and public officials are held responsible for service delivery.
The session brought together editors, publishers and key executives of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) to deepen investigative rigour and promote a people-centred democratic culture in regional and national media coverage.
