Chairman, Board of Directors, Radio Kwara, Kayode Adeyipo has urged media practitioners in the country to dwell on issues that would unite the nation rather than divisive ones ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Adeyipo said: “I want to further advise that as the 2023 general elections approach, the media generally should focus on issues and the factors that unite us rather than on issues that would divide us on ethnic, religious, and cultural inclinations.”
He hailed Kwara state Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration’s timely intervention in saving the state-owned media outfits, particularly Radio Kwara and Kwara Television stations from total collapse.
It will be recalled that the state-owned media outfits were on the verge of collapse, with poor and outdated equipment, and strike, while backlogs of staff salaries and allowances remained unpaid until Governor AbdulRazaq took over the mantle of leadership in 2019.
Adeyipo, a veteran journalist, made the commendation during an interactive session with journalists in Ilorin, the state capital.
He added that under the current administration, the media houses have received adequate attention which have in turn propelled the stations to function and perform at optimal level.
Adeyipo cited the recent procurement of two brand new 100-KVA generators for the two electronic media outfits to cater for the epileptic power supply in the stations despite the diesel crisis in the country as a proof of the Governor’s determination to put the two stations in a state where they could perform optimally.
He said: “Never in the history of Kwara state has so much resources been devoted to the development and modernisation of public media houses, which was a sign of Governor AbdulRazaq’s firm belief in free flow of information which is a necessary and vital ingredient in a democracy.”
The chairman also commended the governor for the approval given for the establishment of two additional radio stations in the state, describing it as a remarkable step in the right direction and a sign of the importance attached to effective communication by the AbdulRazaq administration.
He, therefore, urged the entire workforce in the government-owned media houses to reciprocate the governor’s gesture by being totally devoted to duty to enable their stations to act as an effective link and feedback mechanism between the government and the governed.