By Amos Aar
THE BENUE State Government is to renovate the state secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Makurdi.
Commissioner of Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr Matthew Abo, disclosed this when the State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) led by the Benue State chairperson of the NUJ, Comrade Vincent Nyinongu, paid him a familiarisation visit in his office on Friday.
Mr Abo however said the approval by the past administration for the release of funds for the renovation of the secretariat had elapsed without implementation and NUJ would have to rewrite through him.
He added that the state government would organise accountability press briefings soon for ministries to give account of their achievements so far as demanded by the NUJ chairman.
The commissioner further assured that his ministry would collaborate with the NUJ to provide a level-playing ground for the union.
On the issue of weigh-in allowance, the commissioner said the matter was on the table of the state’s Head of Service and would be resolved soon.
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He tasked Comrade Nyinongu on ensuring unity among all NUJ members.
Earlier, Comrade Nyinongu drew the attention of the Commissioner to the dilapidated condition of the NUJ state secretariat and appealed to him to facilitate its renovation.
Nyinongu congratulated Mr Abo on his appointment and recent release from the hands of kidnappers. The NUJ chairperson also sympathised with the commissioner over the killing of Elder Washima Erukaa in the kidnappers’ den where he was kept together with the commissioner.
The NUJ chairman who commended Governor Hyacinth Alia’s administration for starting on a sound footing pledged to work in synergy with the administration.
In his remarks, Comrade Terlumun Vaatia, the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Middle Belt Dispatch newspaper, commended Governor Alia for massive transformation of the state so far and advised the publicity department of the Ministry of Information to equip its staff to be able to publicise the work of the governor.
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Vaatia also stressed the need for the state government to support The Voice Newspaper to enable the state-owned newspaper get back to work. He also encouraged journalists to always go out to seek first hand information of activities of the governor rather than sit in the comfort of their rooms to file unverified stories.
