FULL TEXT SPEECH DELIVERED BY DR ODILI, THE CONVENER, ALL ANAMBRA MEDIA PRACTITIONERS CONFERENCE

IT WAS HOSTED BY ASSOCIATION OF DIGITAL MEDIA CORE ADVOCATES IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ANAMBRA INDEPENDENT MEDIA SUPPORT ORGANISATION ON FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2022 AT MARBLE ARCH HOTEL, AWKA, ANAMBRA STATE

All Protocols dully observed!

May I warmly welcome everyone present on behalf of the Association of Digital Media Core Advocates, ADMCA, and Anambra Independent Media Support Organization, AIMSO, for finding time to participate in this very crucial conference with the theme: ‘Role of New Media in Promoting Good Governance’.

This is in pursuance of the vital social and constitutional role of the media as the watchdog of every democratic society. In the past 5 years, Association of Digital Media Core Advocates, ADMCA, has been at the vanguard of propagating ethical practices in the media space, especially the digital platforms, which is increasingly becoming democratized due to the accessibility of the cyberspace, and preponderance of mobile devices. Asides hosting conferences of this nature, where media practitioners in Anambra convene to proffer ideas about making the system better, ADMCA has held trainings, seminars as well as award ceremonies, to recognize and reward ethical conducts in the media space.

We are not relenting on our chosen cause; which is why we have gathered here today to do justice to the chosen theme for the benefit of all stakeholders in Anambra State as we chart a new course with the incoming Government of Prof Charles Chukwuma Soludo, whose emergence as the incoming Governor of Anambra State, has ignited widespread spirit of optimism amongst not only Ndi Anambra, but Nigerians in general.
As partners in progress, constituting the Fourth Estate of the Realm, may it be reiterated that the expectation from this conference is to build an Anambra State that will become the pride of all. We are committed to contributing our strategic part in this new hope and optimism that have enveloped Anambra as the new Governor assumes office in a few weeks from today.

As we all know, the world has taken a new shape with the advent of Information Technology. Everything is wearing a new and SWIFT look. Digital actions are taken with just a click and answers are seen instantaneously. Perhaps, the greatest impact of Information Technology is on the media space. New Media has made all the difference. The way we use and consume information has changed. Apart from accessibility, it comes in real-time, which offers the greatest advantage over what the world knew as mass communication in the days of yore.

But it has a watershed. With the swiftness, the ubiquity, the accessibility come the greatest risks of our time-misinformation and fake news!

Today we will be exploring how to harness the good sides of New Media to improve governance, while proffering the mechanisms the government can activate to mitigate, to the barest minimum, the risks therein. Of course, doing this will be a two-way process, a mutual intercourse, between the government and the media.

As much as possible, the media should play its role in a constructive manner, geared towards the development of the state, while the government should treat the media like partners, not enemies or servants. I will call on the incoming Governor of the state to seize the stage and seek greater partnership with the media in order to drive home his agenda for the state.

The media and the new administration must take into consideration these 14 points in order to take Anambra, our state to the desired destination.

Please note these points:

1. Government must engender a relationship that speaks partnership and not a master-slave rapport and this can be achieved with the re-orientation of government’s media team.
2. Avoid ‘divide and rule’ tactics. The media team of government must avoid the habit of creating cliques with a view to dividing the media body, because it is counter-productive and breeds enemies where there should be none.
3. Government must be open and accessible to the media
   Regular town hall meetings with media men should form part of government’s culture in propagating its agenda.
4. Government and its officials should embrace live broadcast strategy and encourage the media to transmit same via their social media handles.
5. Government must avoid gagging the media and/or banishing those perceived as enemies from state functions. It creates room for enemies of government within to find willing tools to do their bidding.
6. On the other hand, the media must be responsive, responsible and result-driven rather than self-serving
7. Media must help government communicate its agenda in critical areas like revenue generation
8. Media should critique, not criticize. Let criticisms reveal alternatives and solutions to problems.
9. Media must help government in its re-branding activities with the aim of marketing Anambra’s tourism, entertainment and cultural heritage.
10. Media should take interest in accountability and flag issues concerning abuse of office. The new media is a democratic tool that enables citizens to demand greater accountability.
11. Media and government should work in partnership in the area of monitoring projects, with a view to communicating the progress and challenges to citizens
12. Beyond the reach of traditional media, social media is arguably changing the relationship between governments and citizens.
13. Governments should recognise that these new media forums present a certain accessibility that citizens otherwise wouldn’t have. It enables them to express legitimate concerns and engage more directly with those who govern.
14. Government should not attempt to regulate the media. Without freedom, the media will not be able to perform its responsibility. The freedom of the press and access to information is the oxygen of democracy and must never be compromised.

It is pertinent at this point to note with pride that the antecedents of the incoming Governor in public service have rekindled hopes and that his success in office will definitely speak volumes about the place of the Igbo man in the socio-political dynamics of Nigeria.

May this new government take us all there!!!

Thank you for listening!!!

Ekenem

Dr. Harris Chuma-Odili, FCMsp, TLi
Ogene Igbo