Aniagwu Sets New Standards For Information Officers

BY PATRICK MGBODO/JUMAI NWACHUKWU

Delta State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, yesterday set new standards for information officers in the state to bridge the communication gap between the government and the grassroots.

In a parley with the officers, the Commissioner charged them to file a minimum of 10 reports in a month to the Ministry of Information from their beats for onward transmission through the state-owned media outfits.

Aniagwu stressed that it was the duty of the officers as communication experts to set the agenda for public discussion, adding that they should not only concern themselves with reporting the state government alone but also convey the pulse of the grassroots to the gov¬ernment.

According to him, the ministry will not hesitate to mete necessary sanctions on officers who fall short of the new directive, stressing that the initiative was not to victimize anybody but to add value to the system.

‘’We want information officers to report what is hap¬pening in their respective areas of coverage. We believe that it is not only the government that is talking, our people are also talking. The best way to get the views of the people across to the government is to report all sides of the story all the time’’ he said.

Addressing some of the observed constraints of the of¬ficers, the Commissioner challenged them to strengthen their relationships with their bosses and get more in¬novative on the job, stressing that it was a privilege for them to be engaged by the government at a time when unemployment has become a global challenge.

He condemned the multiplicity of chapels in the state chapter of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and advised the information officers to unite rather than split into several factions to achieve results.

In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary of the Min¬istry, Mr. Paul Osahor, underscored indiscipline as a major challenge among the civil servants, even as he called on them to ‘’be ready to work and the sky will be your limits’’.

Some of the officers, who were recognized for their outstanding performance overtime, include the PRO of Uvwie Local Government Area, Mr. Ambrose Ologide, who was spontaneously rewarded by the commissioner.

For others, they thanked Aniagwu for his efforts to re¬form the state information apparatus and pledged to do more having been inspired and motivated by their boss.

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