By Bob MajiriOghene Etemiku
Barely 72 hours after Alltimepost publication of the story: Comatose ADP: Why its Failure Will Mar Obaseki’s 200,000 Job Creation Plan, our correspondent in Benin City who anchored the special report received a phone call from Peter Aikhuomobhogbe, Program Manager of the state agricultural agency.
Prior to the publication of the story, Mr. Aikhuomobhogbe had agreed to speak with Alltimepost.com because ‘there was nothing to hide’. Even though he was unable to keep his first appointment with us because of a tight schedule, he graciously rescheduled the interview for a later date.
On the day of the interview, Alltimepost told him that we would not publish anything short of consideration for our professional ethics of balance, objectivity and fairness to all concerned. We took his email with a promise to let him see the story after its publication.
On Saturday 3rd May 2019, Mr. Aikhuomobhogbe called to express certain concerns about the story. There were three areas of concerns, namely: that he was not happy with our title and the use of the word ‘comatose;’ that Alltimepost.com relied too heavily on information from the nearly dead library on the ADP premises and three, that we quoted him too verbatim.
On his first misgiving, Alltimepost.com told him that the title was an editorial decision reflecting the outcome of our investigation. On his second misgiving – we told the PM that background information reflecting the glory days of the ADP from the ADP library was our way of being exact with the comparative analysis of the agricultural condition of old and current ADP Edo state.
On his last concern that we quoted him ‘too verbatim,’ – we said it exactly the way he said it – that even though he does not have the exact number on the database of the people the ADP had trained, that it was a sizable number.
After he expressed these concerns, Alltimepost.com asked him if we had printed/published anything that he had not said. He replied that the publication did not introduce other items, apart from those he had told us.
Alltimepost.com therefore told him that if he felt very strongly about the publication, we could pay him another visit so that he could clear the air or provide more information that could be helpful to his agency, but he declined.
We pressed further: would he want to do a rejoinder to be published by Alltimepost. Again, the PM declined. Concluding remarks in Alltimepost.com report on the Edo ADP said that: in spite of the great plan by the Edo government to use agriculture as part of an avenue to employ 200,000 Edo people, what is on ground at the Edo ADP and the Ministry of Agriculture & Natural Resources, both in Benin City do not support such tall ambition.
Alltimepost visited the premises of the Ministry of Agriculture & Natural Resources on May 6, 2019. Conditions referred to in the story remained the same.
Please read original report and share at:https://www.alltimepost.com/2019/04/comatose-edo-adp-why-its-failure-will-mar-obasekis-200000-job-creation-plan/
