The Union of Journalists of South Sudan (UJOSS) branch office in Western Bahr el Ghazal State on Tuesday carried out a one-day training of journalists drawn from different media houses in the state on the National Elections Act (Amendment) 2023 ahead of the upcoming 2024 general elections.
The one-day training facilitated by the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) brought together 15 journalists.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj at the event, the state chairperson for UJOSS, Stephen Bodigoni, said the training aims at equipping the journalists to be prepared to cover the upcoming elections without difficulties.
“This gathering is very important because everybody is talking about the elections which are due to take place in December 2024 and as journalists, we need our members in the state to be ready to cover them properly,” he said. “We went through some of the provisions of the Act which we thought were very important for journalists because if we do know the laws that guide journalists during the general elections, it will be a shame. This is why we thought it was important to go through the election law.”
For his part, CEPO’s coordinator in Western Bahr el Ghazal State, Stephen Robo Musa, said understanding the contents of the National Elections Act is paramount for the journalists in the state.
“As a journalist, I think it is very important to understand the contents and the regulations that guide the electoral process because there is a lot to be done from now until the elections, including the voter registrations,” he said. “Today we focused on the mandate of the National Elections Commission, the powers of its members, their duties, and also the regulations. We also looked at the media’s role during elections.”
“We tried to give a background that journalists should know that the law is in place and they need to follow it as professionals,” Musa added.
Meanwhile, a participant, Ferida Lawrence, said she was happy to learn about the election law.
“I am so happy that we acquired knowledge about the National Elections Act and managed to learn about how the National Elections Commission is formed and who will appoint its members as well as the role of the journalists during the elections,” she said. “We have learned a lot and as journalists, we have to be trained so that we can carry out our duties professionally during the elections.”