… Seeks Collaboration
By Jude Atupulazi
The new Commissioner for Information in Anambra State, Dr Law Mefor, has stated the readiness of his Ministry to work with Fides Newspaper in enlightening the public on the activities of the Chukwuma Soludo Administration which he described as under reported.
Mefor, who stated this last Monday in his office in Awka while welcoming a delegation of Fides Media led by its Director, Rev Fr Dr Robert Anagboso, said the Soludo Government was not unmindful of the critical role of Faith Based Media Organizations and was therefore keen to collaborate with them as they were pivotal to the development of the state.
Describing Anambra as a Christian State, Mefor noted that 99% of the population of the state being Christians, the government had no choice than to work with them.
‘If Prof Soludo is working to better the lives of the people and 99% of Ndi Anambra are Christians, it means he is trying to better the lives of Christians,’ Mefor said, noting that what the Church represented in the equation of the state must be factored in government’s policies.
He described Soludo as a man with a fierce passion to develop the state which was why he rejected the appointment he had to work at the senate to come down to Anambra to work with Soludo because he believed in the governor.
The Commissioner said Soludo was not a clout chaser as he had already made a name in the country, both as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and in the presidency years before that.
‘Prof Soludo already has clout and money, having been a consultant to over a dozen financial institutions. So, money could not have been the primary motive of Prof Soludo,’ he said, insisting that Soludo had the blueprint to turn the state around through his transformation agenda.
He assured that Soludo remained committed to making good his promise of turning the state to the Dubai and Taiwan of Africa, noting that Anambra was the economic and commercial hub of Nigeria which needed someone like Soludo to transform to a true gateway to the East.
The Commissioner who said he was always a phone call away for everybody, called on the people of the state to help in actualizing Soludo’s vision.
‘We are a gifted people with so many famous personalities. All we need is a little bit of organization,’ he said.
Mefor who said he had worked with the Catholic Diocese of Abuja’s Communications Unit, called on the media to join hands with the government to educate the public, noting that the policies and achievements of Soludo were under reported. To this end, he said he was planning to take the media on a tour of projects to see things first hand.
He commended Fides Media for helping government in enlightening the people about its programmes and was particularly happy that a page in Fides Newspaper was dedicated solely to that. Mefor promised to visit Fides Media soon on a facility tour, as well as touring the local government areas in the state to showcase government’s achievements.
Earlier, while stating the reason for their visit, the Director of Fides Media, Rev Fr Dr Robert Anagboso, said Fides was the Social Communications Outfit of the Catholic Diocese of Awka which believed in developmental journalism.
Fr Anagboso enumerated the various services provided by Fides Media which included printing of brochures, newspaper, flex production, shirt branding, video editing and coverage, as well as having a photo studio, and asked the government to patronize Fides Media.
He welcomed the new Commissioner and wished him well in his new office.
For his part, the Editor-in-Chief of Fides Newspaper, Mr Jude Atupulazi, while also welcoming the Commissioner, urged him to do all within his powers to address the sour relationship between the state government and journalists in the state.
Atupulazi described the Soludo Administration as the worst in media/government relations, particularly citing the closure of the state’s newspaper, National Light, by the governor. He likened the development to President Bola Tinubu closing Radio Nigeria or the Nigeria Television Authority.
The Editor-in-Chief who also faulted the Government’s stoppage of monthly stipends to journalists in the state, noted it was the only state to do so. he then urged the Commissioner to address the perception of the Soludo government being hostile to journalists.
He finally expressed the hope that the Commissioner would use his wealth of experience in the Media Industry to turn things around.
On the Fides delegation were also the Librarian, Mrs Leticia Ogbonna and Miss Oluchi Anyaeji of the Accounts Office.
