By ‘Wole Adedeji, Ilorin
A vereran journalist and the current Chairman, Board of Directors of the Kwara State Broadcasting Corporation, Elder Kayode Adeyipo, has lauded the state Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, for giving priority attention to the state media outfits.
Adeyipo, who was a director in the Kwara Radio, as well as the state Ministry of Information, said that the recent timely intervention by the governor to salvage the deteriorating conditions of both the Kwara Radio and the Kwara State Television Authority saved the two stations from imminent collapse.
Adeyipi averred that the state-owned media organisations were on the verge of collapse, due to their poor and outdated equipments, coupled with backlogs of unpaid staff salaries and allowances of several years by previous administrations.
Adeyipo said, “Until Governor AbdulRazaq took over the mantle of leadership in 2019, the staff of Radio Kwara had been on strike for months over unpaid emoluments, harsh working conditions and outdated equipments.”
The veteran journalist, who stated this while fielding questions from journalists in Ilorin, the state capital, stresssd that under the current administration, the state-owned media houses had received attentions that had in turn propelled the stations to function and perform at optimal level.
He also commended the recent procurement of two brand new
100-KVA generators for the two electronic media outfits to cater for their epileptic power supply, even when the cost of diesel had reached the crisis level in the country.
He added, “This is a proof of the governor’s determination to put the two stations in a state where they could perform optimally.
“Never in the history of Kwara State has so much resources been devoted to the development and modernisation of public media houses. It is a sign of Governor AbdulRazaq’s firm belief in free flow of information, which is a necessary and vital ingredient in a democracy.”
He slso praised 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 however urged the entire workforce in the government-owned media houses to reciprocate government gestures by being totally devoted to duty, which in turn would enable the stations act as an effective link and feedback mechanism between the government and the governed.
Adeyipo also urged journalists in the state to dwell on issues that would unite the nation rather than engaging in those ones capable of causing divisions in the land ahead of the 2023 general elections.
He concluded, “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.”
