Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has charged journalists to serve as a bridge between the State government and the people by reporting effectively on the state government’s projects, policies, and achievements, thereby keeping the public informed and up-to-date on its activities.
Sanwo-Olu who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat gave the charge today during a courtesy visit by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) led by the Chairman, Mr. Adeleye Ajayi, held at the Deputy Governor’s Office, Round House, Alausa, Ikeja.
The Governor noted that public commentary is important as it helps to know the way the public perceives the government and know how the government initiative, programmes, and policies affect the citizens either positively or negatively.
He also emphasized the significance of public commentary across various platforms, including social media and print, pointing out that such discourse has the power to shape the narrative and influence the trajectory of any government, as it ultimately drives change and accountability.
According to Sanwo-Olu, “I want to charge you to find a better way to showcase a lot of the programmes of the state government. Public commentaries on social media, print, among others are very important and I think they help the citizens to actually know a lot of things that the government is doing.”
Speaking further, the Governor stated that the Lagos State Government has done a lot of initiative and training that goes across different sectors in the state, but these initiatives don’t seem to be captured and the public is not aware of all these things.
The Governor added that “every day in the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation and other government parastatals with an enormous amount of training and about 27 facilities are available. People are been trained and we give them tools so that we can also help our youth to know that this is going on and if they are interested they can plug into it other than staying at home.”
Earlier in his address, the President, Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) Lagos Chapter, Mr. Adeleye Ajayi seeks the collaboration of the state government in the union’s upcoming delegate conference which will be held in Owerri, Imo State, adding that the union has nominated the Governor Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu as NUJ Lagos Chapter Grand Patron Award.
Acknowledging the significant progress made by the Sanwo/Hamzat administration in various sectors, including transportation, health, environment, education, innovation, security, and governance by the state government, the President stated the THEMES Agenda and its successor, THEMES Plus, having brought about transformative changes in the state.
Ajayi added that the Union proposes a quarterly media engagement between the Governor and the media to promote the state government’s initiatives and policies that will create proper awareness among the general public.