...lack of purpose of unregistered CSOs pose a threat to peace and societal development - Ajulo
The management of Leadership newspaper has issued a written apology for publishing a misleading and fabricated article attributed to the Ondo State Redemption Initiative (OSRI). The article falsely implicated the State Governor, Hon. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, former Governor Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, the newly inaugurated Attorney General of the State, Dr. Kayode Ajulo SAN OON, and Mr. John Paul Akinduro, Spokesperson to Deputy Governor Olayide Adelami.
In a retraction published on page 4 of Wednesday's edition, the newspaper explicitly apologized to Governor Aiyedatiwa, former Governor Mimiko, Dr. Kayode Ajulo, and John Paul Akinduro.
The retraction stated, "In LEADERSHIP weekend edition of March 16, we carried a story "APC Group Raises Alarm Over Mimiko's Alliance with Aiyedatiwa" which appeared on page 18.
"We regret the misrepresentations in some quotes as contained in the story, where we erroneously mentioned the names of Ondo state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, former governor Olusegun Mimiko, Attorney General of the state, Dr Kayode Ajulo and Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Mr John Paul Akinduro, Spokesperson to the deputy governor, in an noncomplimentary manner.
"While we state it is not in our practice to condone such misguided reportage, we strongly regret the embarrassment the report may have caused them"
In his reaction, the new Attorney General of the State, Dr Ajulo, said, “We all know that journalism is a responsible profession, and Leadership Newspaper has exhibited one of this noble qualities with the retraction and I wish them well. As a professional, I will not allow anyone, under any pretence, tarnish the hard-earned reputation I have tirelessly built and still building."
He condemned the activities of unregistered civil society groups, citing them as a threat to peace and societal development. Ajulo highlighted the tendency for many of these groups to operate outside regulatory and ethical boundaries. He emphasized that such groups often lack a clear purpose and are established solely to promote political instability. Ajulo stressed the importance of civil society organizations upholding integrity and accountability, while also underscoring OSRI's recent activities as indicative of its lack of credibility and questionable motives.
He said "A civil society organisation is supposed to be known for upright standing and be a reliable link between the government and the people not an attack dog for a group of disgruntled individuals whose trade is to continually cause political instability that can engender unrest in the State.
Once an organisation cannot be traced to a reputable individual and continually parades pseudo identities, the purpose and integrity of such an organisation stand questionable."
Ajulo further noted that his extensive involvement in civil rights organizations, both locally and internationally, characterized by transparency and ethical conduct, exposed OSRI as an organisation with sinister motives.
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