Nneka Luke

It was very unsettling for Nneka Luke, a senior reporter, producer and presenter at Liberty Television and Radio Kaduna, seeing the interns in her newsroom unproductive and running errands for members of staff. She decided to make the period worthwhile for the 100+ interns. She took the bold step to organise training and mentoring programme for the interns, with the aim of equipping them with the needed journalism and leadership skills. This was a welcome idea by the entire management and staff of her organisation, which lent their support in various ways, including having to take the interns on various issues relating to journalism. Speaking of the early results of the training, Nneka remarks, “Over the years we had issues or failures of segments and inadequate vox pops in our news bulletins and programmes”. The interns have impressively filled these gaps and are doing excellently well. Well commended by various heads of department of the organisation, the training has been entrenched in the structure of the organisation with a functional department named ‘Intern Orientation’, which ensures that every new intern undergoes the training at start. The unit is headed by Nneka herself.

Nneka Luke’s story x-rays the challenges of women with disabilities in Nigeria’s electoral process, especially in the 2019 general elections. The story, “Women with Disabilities Lament Being Sidelined Ahead of 2019 Elections” questions the Independent National Electoral Commission’ (INEC) commitment towards mainstreaming these physically challenged women in the electoral process. It also unveils the desire of these women to be voted into various political offices, as well as query the delay of the bill for persons with disabilities in Nigeria. She made a case for physically challenged women as full right citizens who should be allowed to exercise their franchise, by showing clearly that some of them are very educated and intelligent and can make positive impacts in the nation if given the chance.