By Bilyaminu Gambo Kong-kol
Journalism is one of the many sectors that had faced neglect before Governor Bala Mohammed came on board. This is because despite being in the 21st Century, journalists in Bauchi State were left behind, using obsolete equipment. This is more common among those working under the state government-owned stations.
In his determination to end this ugly trend, Governor Bala Mohammed who is also a veteran journalist has recently taken some measures which will go a long way in changing the current narratives.
Recall that His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Bauchi State, Senator Bala Abdulkadir who received the newly elected officials of the Bauchi State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists on Wednesday, September 2nd, 2020, donated a brand new operational vehicle and five million Naira to the NUJ.
The Governor also expressed his resolve to totally rehabilitate the Union’s State Secretariat and promised to include the NUJ in the allocation of the ongoing 2,500 housing scheme in a view to cushion their hardship.
Moreover, Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed had met with Mr Osita Okechukwu, the Director-General, Voice of Nigeria in August in Abuja. The meeting according to the VON DG was to strengthen the bilateral relationship with Bauchi State Government on its quest to digitalize Bauchi State-owned radio and television stations.
Apart from the aforementioned achievements, Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed had also purchased new modern communication facilities, such as voice recorders, video cameras, photo cameras, complete set of public address system among others worth millions of naira to members of his press crew to enable them to carry out their job efficiently.
With these recent developments, I have no hesitation to say that the Governor is ready to ameliorate the sufferings journalists are going through in the state. His conscience pricks him to feel Bauchi State under his watch can not afford to be left behind as the world is going digital, thereby ending the era of analogue journalism in Bauchi state. And this will affect the job of the journalists positively.
Looking at the fact that journalism is the only medium that links the government and the governed, the gestures by Governor Bala will facilitate in bridging the gap between the dittoed, and pave the way for growth and development in the state.
Bilyaminu Gambo Kong-kol writes from Bauchi.
