Journalists and commentators around the world have defended Journalist, Kadaria Ahmed, anchor of #TheCandidates for asking PDP Presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar tough questions.
Kadaria was heavily criticized following yesterday’s grilling on Atiku Abubakar and his running mate Peter Obi.
Pius Adesanmi, a columnist and professor based in Canada described those criticizing the moderator as people who “congenitally protect men of power”.
Mr. Adesanmi says Kadaria Ahmed was restoring “3 decades of brown envelopes killed after Dele Giwa’s generation”.
Another writer JJ Omojuwa says Kadaria’s critics are people who “couldn’t relate to the serious ones”.
Mr. Omojuwa urged the critics to “focus on your campaigns. Leave Kadaria alone. “Like she did in the 2011 debates and has done ever since, she asked questions that other journalists would have pretended the viewers weren’t waiting to hear”.
Additional reporting
Kadaria Ahmed is a distinguished journalist with M.A, in Television from Goldsmiths, University of London, and a Bachelor’s from Bayero University Kano. She is also a Chevening Scholar.
She started her career at the BBC where she was a senior producer working on award-winning programs, Focus on Africa and Network Africa.
In 2014, she co-created, produced and presented Straight Talk, an interview programme designed to probe and confront Nigeria’s decision makers on matters of relevance.
The syndicated show grew to an audience of over 4 million viewers globally. Some of her notable interview subjects include Ibrahim Babangida, Tonye Princewill,Babatunde Fashola, Rotimi Amaechi, Ali Baba, Oby Ezekwesili, among many others.
In 2017, she launched a new show called The Core on Channels TV.
In July 2017, she interviewed Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) who made news by declaring it’s “Biafra or death”.
In the build up to the February 2019 general elections, she moderated the town hall meetings for presidential candidates and their deputies, specifically that of President Muhammadu Buhari and his vice, Professor Yemi Osibanjo. Her recent interview was anchored yesterday where she hosts Atiku Abubakar and Mr Peter Obi, the PDP presidential candidate and running mate.
