Minister of Works in Nigeria, Sen. David Umahi, has denied allegations that he snubbed journalists who attended his ministry’s news conference in Abuja. The minister allegedly walked out on the newsmen during his turn to present his ministry’s scorecard after one year of President Bola Tinubu’s presidency.
However, speaking with newsmen in Abakaliki after participating in activities marking Gov. Francis Nwifuru’s one year in office, Umahi described the allegation as untrue.
“I wanted to appreciate selected media houses for their commendable coverage of my ministry’s activities,” Umahi explained. “They all worked hard for us during President Bola Tinubu’s inauguration of projects in Lagos, and I wanted to thank them profusely.”
Umahi stated that the event was fixed for 2 p.m. on May 28 but was rescheduled due to conflicting engagements of the journalists.
“We then shifted the event to 3 p.m. though my flight to Ebonyi for the governor’s inauguration of projects was also slated for the same time,” Umahi noted. “My aide informed me that the event was set by 3:30 p.m. but when I got to the ministry’s hall, there was no single camera. The only camera on sight was from my ministry, and I became very angry with the aide.”
Umahi demanded that the event be shifted to Monday, June 3, to maintain the element of surprise for the selected media houses. “If it had been held, the surprise element would be defeated. Reports of shunning journalists, therefore, do not exist because I cannot invite and shun them at the same time,” the minister said.
He added that he would still offer appreciation to the group of media houses he considered special to the ministry.
