Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa state has described the Nigerian media as the bastion of hope for the country’s democracy and good governance.
The governor made the commendation when the management of Blueprint Newspapers, led by its Chief Operating Officer (COO), Malam Salisu Umar, paid a courtesy visit on him at the Government House, Lafia.
He said, “The Nigerian media has been bent, head-over-heels, in ensuring the survival of our nascent democracy. Without you at the battle field our democracy would have been a still-birth but we will keep on growing and providing the needed leadership for democracy to thrive,” he said.
Governor Sule commended Blueprint stable for its balance and objective reportage since hitting the newsstands in 2011, saying the media platform has continued to project the activities and efforts of the state government in a positive direction, since he assumed leadership of the state over a year ago.
While pledging to partner with the media organisation for greater productivity, Governor Sule enjoined the Blueprint team to ensure greater objective reportage of the state government activities.
“We want to thank you sincerely for all the good that we continue to see about the state in your paper. I am not surprised because aside being a team very experienced journalists and administrators, your COO happens to be a brother from this state. We should therefore be rest assured that we have you as ambassadors of Nasarawa state,” he said.
He therefore urged the management and staff of Blueprint to keep up the good work and assured of the state government’s readiness to partner for mutual benefits.
On the activities of Darul-Salam, a terrorist group, Governor Sule said the clearance operation which led to the rescue of over 410 women and children including family members of the terrorist group has brought peace to the state, saying their family members had been reunited.
Earlier, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Blueprint, Alhaji Salihu Umar, assured the state governor of adequate publicity for its achievements, explaining that the organisation would continue to support the silent transformation ongoing in Nasarawa state by projecting them to the outside world.
Malam Umar lauded Governor Sule for his commitment to dealing with the security challenges in the state, especially within the Toto communities.
He said, “Specifically, your quick intervention to arrest the security challenges bedevilling the state is an attestation of your purposeful and people-centred leadership in the state.
“We are all living witnesses to your constant visits to Mr. President, and requesting him to deploy security personnel to your state to curb the menace going on in Toto local government area. To be specific, Your Excellency didn’t rest until the devils called Darul- Salam were flushed out in the entire local government,” he said.
Among the management team of the sprawling media organisation were the Managing Editor, Mr. Clem Oluwole, Daily Editor, Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulrauf and Deputy General Manager, Business and Strategy, Mr. Durojaiye Hassan.
