Journalists have been urged to always play by the rules of the game and uphold the spirit of balancing and objectivity on issues regarding economic and financial reporting in the country.

A Permanent Secretary in Kano State, Muhammad Danyaro, made the plea at a one day workshop organized for reporters by the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

In a presentation titled ‘The Sanctity of Ethical Journalism’, Mr Muhammad Danyaro challenged journalists to uphold the ethics of the profession by being objective in the practice.

Danyaro, who was the Keynote Speaker, noted the need for Nigerian media to shun sensational practice and focus on developmental journalism.

The journalists were drawn from the north western geo-political zone of Nigeria, and were trained on the importance of investigative journalism, new media and economic crimes reporting, as well ethical issues in journalism practice.

Chairman of the Commission, Mr Ibrahim Lamorde, represented by the Deputy Director Public Affairs of the Commission, Mr Osita Nwajah, urged the media to intensify its effort in investigative skills to facilitate the fight against corruption by exposing incidences of graft.

Although, participants disagreed with some of the facts raised, especially on balancing and selectivity, they, however, described the workshop as timely, considering the urgent need for journalists to report issues regarding financial and economic crimes.

Meanwhile, the commission has promised to continue to partner with journalists in an effort to ensure fair reporting of financial crimes in Nigeria.