Bauchi Govt to Rebuild State NUJ Secretariat

By Segun Awofadeji

Plans are underway by the Bauchi State Government to reconstruct a befitting secretariat for the state Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists(NUJ) in Bauchi metropolis towards ensuring a conducive environment for journalists to operate.

The state Governor, Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, disclosed this yesterday during the opening ceremony of the 2020 NUJ Press Week held at the Development Exchange Centre(DEC) in Bauchi.

Represented by his Deputy, Senator Baba Tela, the governor said the state government and the media have enjoyed a harmonious working relationship since the inception of the administration, pointing out that journalists in the state are partners in progress.

He said the 2021 press week was timely and apt, considering the fact that the country was going through a revolution in journalism practice in the aspect of reporting and in the discharge of its responsibilities.

According to him, “There is the need for journalists in the state to support the state government in the running of the administration, anything short of that will be a disservice to the state. Our administration has resolved to recuperate all the media outfits such as the Bauchi Radio Cooperation, Bauchi Television Authority, among others, in order to close the communication gap.

“We appreciate the role journalists played during the outbreak of pandemic and epidemics, particularly during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the state because they were the ones on ground disseminating first-hand information on our progress.”

Mohammed urged journalists in the state to ensure objective, fair and balanced reports always, saying such will go a long way to curtail the problem of fake news and hate speeches in the country.

In his address, the state NUJ Chairman, Umar Sa’idu, commended the state government for the support it has given to working journalists to discharge their duties without any form of intimidation.

He said the week-long activity of the press week of the NUJ was geared towards keeping journalists abreast with the latest trends and developments in the profession in order to perform their duties effectively, even as he thanked the state government for providing journalists in the state the enabling environment to work and be productive.