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Nigeria’s maritime journalists were conspicuously absent on Tuesday as Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri unveiled an Aquaculture Village in Yenegwe, near Yenagoa, alongside a large-scale harvest from the state’s fish farm.
The exclusion has raised concerns among maritime stakeholders over the under-reporting of Bayelsa’s marine and blue economy initiatives, including the proposed Agge Deep Seaport project, despite the state’s significant investments in the sector.
An aide to Governor Diri, who spoke to Shipping World on condition of anonymity, attributed the perceived media neglect to shortcomings in the leadership of the state’s Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, supervised by Pharmacist Faith Zibs-Godwin.
“This is what you get when you appoint a non-professional to head such a critical ministry. What business has a pharmacist got to do with a Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy?” the aide said.
The official further questioned the implications of excluding specialist journalists from major sectoral events.
“Can you imagine the implications of denying sports journalists an opportunity to cover such an event if it was a sports facility? That is why it is important to place square pegs in square holes,” the aide added.
In contrast, Shipping World investigations found that activities of the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr Adegboyega Oyetola, receive consistent coverage from maritime journalists, either through their physical presence at events or press statements issued by his media aide, Dr Akinola Akinola.
The investigation also found that media teams at the Nigeria Content Monitoring and Development Board and Tantita Security Services enjoy considerable support from the maritime press, highlighting the importance of proactive media engagement in promoting sectoral initiatives.
However, there was no verifiable evidence that Godwin maintains comparable engagement with the maritime journalism community.
A maritime journalist in Lagos, who spoke to Shipping World, said the minister’s activities rarely reach the specialist press.
“We only see her postings on Facebook when she is part of Governor Douye Diri’s entourage on foreign trips. We have never seen a press release from her. In fact, we don’t even know her media aide by name,” the journalist said.
The controversy underscores the need for strategic media engagement to ensure that Bayelsa’s investments in aquaculture, port infrastructure and the wider blue economy receive adequate national attention.
