BY MAVIS N PODOKOLO
A two-day virtual knowledge sharing session for Pacific Media CEOs and Owners on reporting on integrity and Anti-Corruption in the Pacific officially started yesterday.
The event aims at ensuring Pacific Journalists are more sustainably trained to engage in integrity and anti-corruption reporting.
Prime Minister of Solomon Islands Manasseh Sogavare when delivering his opening remarks congratulated the president Georgina Kekea and the executive of the Media Association of Solomon Islands for hosting this Webinar.
“Allow me to congratulate the president and executive of the Media Association of Solomon Islands. As the patron of MASI I feel deeply humbled that we have been accorded this privilege,” Sogavare said.
He stressed that the media is referred to as the fourth estate and plays a vital and pivotal role in our democracy.
“They watch over the other three and report sometimes fairly and sometimes unfairly.
“That is why in order to be fair and accurate in reporting and exposing integrity in corruption issues in the areas that are absolutely crucial, you must first understand how these institutions operate and how they relate to other institutions within the government,” Sogavare emphasized.
Pacific Island News Association (PINA) vice president Kathalina Tohi said PINA through funding support from the Pacific Anti-corruption Journalist and Network, in partnership with the Media Association of Solomon Islands (MASI) was able to convene this virtual knowledge sharing session on integrity and anti-corruption for CEOs and Media owners.
“I would like to acknowledge and sincerely thank the MASI president Georgina Kekea and her team, PACJIN coordinator Samasoni Pareti and team and the UN Pacific -Regional Anti-Corruption (UN-PRAC) for putting all this together,” Tohi said.
MASI president Georgina Kekea in response gave her deepest gratitude to partners for giving MASI the special treatment in this knowledge sharing session.
Kekea said as host to this conference and with the support from PINA, UN-PRAC and PACJIN, MASI hopes the conference will be a success for all.
“We hope the conference will be a success for all of us and that its objectives are met. As mentioned by Prime Minister of Solomon Islands the media plays a vital role in reporting corruption and that the media also understand the institutions established to combat corruption,” she said.
Kekea further thanked the Pacific media family, MASI board and the Media industry in Solomon Islands, CEOs and representatives of the different media organizations for prioritizing this event.
The two-day session is hosted by MASI at Tavanipupu Resort on Marau, Guadalcanal Province with the support from Pacific Islands News Association (PINA), UN Pacific -Regional Ant-Corruption (UN-PRAC) and Pacific Anti-corruption Journalists Network (PACJIN).
