Rufai, Ayo Mairo-Ese: You Guys Are Not the Story! – By Olarotimi Omolofi-Aribaba

Enough of all this showmanship. I disagree with anyone who says that Ayo Mario was right in the way she handled the situation with Rufai and Lere Olayinka. In my opinion, Ayo did a poor job that day, and she needs to be reminded that journalism is not about the journalists themselves. It is about the people the public, and their right to hear directly from public officials and demand accountability.

Lere had every right to refuse to answer questions from anyone, whether it was Rufai, Ayo, or any other journalist. However, his refusal should not have given Ayo the audacity to abruptly terminate the entire interview. That to me was highly unprofessional.

I don’t think the situation that day was worse than the confrontation between the late Onapasa and Rufai. In that instance when things became heated, the programme went on a break. That gave everyone an opportunity to calm down, address their emotions and egos, and eventually return to the studio to continue the discussion.That would have been the more professional approach for Ayo Mario that day. She could have called for a break, allowed both sides to cool off, and then resumed the interview when everyone was calmer. Instead, ending the entire interview deprived the public of the opportunity to hear from a public official.

And this is the point journalists need to understand, we are not watching these programmes to listen to journalists display their “good grammar,” ego, or emotions. We are watching because we want answers and feedback from the people who serve in public office. Ayo, Abati, Rufai, and the rest of the ARISE News crew are journalists, NOT THE STORY. The story is the public and the issues affecting them, hence our eagerness for a feedback

The constant display of ego, emotional outbursts, unbalanced journalism, and unprofessional conduct needs to stop. Journalism should be about holding public officials accountable and giving the public access to information, not about journalists asserting their personalities or winning arguments. At the end of the day, it is not about Ayo, Rufai, Abati, or any other journalist. It is about usthe people.

So my question is why should Ayo’s decision to end an interview deprive me, and the other members of public of the opportunity to hear directly from a public official simply because she felt the interview was not going the way she wanted? That is where I believe the real problem lies. That for me is very unprofessional!.