OSOGBO – Journalists in Osun State have been encouraged to intensify investigative reporting and demand greater transparency in local government administration as the Insight Initiative for Community and Social Development (IICSD) showcased its artificial intelligence-powered AMOYE chatbot during an interactive session held at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre, Osogbo.
The session formed part of the organisation's efforts to strengthen public interest journalism and improve citizens' access to information on local government governance through technology.
Speaking during the engagement, Mr. Yusuf Sodiq explained that the AMOYE AI chatbot was conceived to meet the increasing public demand for instant access to credible information.
"We started this programme in October 2025 after realising that people across society increasingly want information at their fingertips. We therefore leveraged artificial intelligence to develop AMOYE, an interactive chatbot that responds to users' questions and provides governance-related information," he said.
According to him, the platform is designed to operate through WhatsApp, allowing users to make enquiries either by typing or sending voice notes from the comfort of their homes.
Addressing journalists, the Executive Director of the Insight Initiative for Community and Social Development, Mr. Jare Tiamiyu, emphasised the media's responsibility in promoting transparency and accountability in local government administration.
"The funds allocated to local governments do not belong to the APC or any political party. They belong to the people of Osun State. Whenever public money is spent, citizens deserve to know who benefited, how much was spent and how those decisions were made," he said.
He challenged journalists to scrutinise local government finances by asking critical questions regarding allocations, expenditures and beneficiary lists.
"Where is the list of those empowered? How much has each local government received? What is the breakdown of expenditure? Local government workers should also know whether their salaries and other statutory obligations have been met," he added.
Tiamiyu disclosed that the organisation had spent the last eight months implementing the second phase of the OsunOpenLG project, an initiative aimed at opening local government governance to greater public scrutiny.
According to him, the project has included stakeholder engagements and capacity-building programmes for local government chairmen on participatory budgeting, procurement procedures and modern governance practices.
He noted that the AMOYE chatbot was developed to simplify public access to governance information through a familiar platform such as WhatsApp.
"We created AMOYE so that citizens can obtain information easily, even by sending voice notes. Our goal is to make public information available to everyone regardless of where they are," he said.
Tiamiyu, however, expressed concern over what he described as inadequate transparency in the management of local government funds during the first half of 2026.
He alleged that budgets presented by APC-led local government chairmen were not approved by their respective legislative councils and questioned the legal basis for some expenditures and projects.
According to him, the organisation had submitted Freedom of Information (FOI) requests seeking financial records and expenditure details but had not received responses.
"We are asking the media to help demand answers. The public deserves to know how much each local government received, how the money was spent and whether those expenditures complied with approved budgets," he said.
On the sustainability of the AMOYE platform, Tiamiyu assured participants that the initiative enjoys international support and would continue to operate.
"We have international partners supporting the maintenance of the platform, and we will continue improving it to ensure citizens have uninterrupted access to public information," he said.
The interactive session brought together journalists and media practitioners to explore how artificial intelligence and data-driven reporting can strengthen public interest journalism, enhance citizens' access to information and promote accountability in local government administration across Osun State.
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