The Director of Information and Communication Department, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Muhammad Hazat Sule, has charged information officers across the various Secretariats, Departments and Agencies (SDAs) of the FCTA to take key interest in reporting the ongoing infrastructural revolution in Abuja, under the leadership of the Minister of the FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike.
Sule, who is the number one information officer of the FCTA, gave the charge while declaring open a ‘One-Day’ training organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, FCTA Chapel (FCTA-NUJ) in Abuja.
He spoke through his Special Assistant (SA), Mr. Ben Ukeji, who represented him at the occasion.
He noted that since Wike came on board, FCT has been witnessing a lot of transformation infrastructural wise, hence the need for information officers to seriously note and upscale reportage of such developmental stride.
His words: “It is important that all of you note and take seriously the current infrastructural revolution that is going on in the FCT, under the able leadership of the Minister of the FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike.
“Since he came on board, FCT has been witnessing a lot of transformation infrastructural wise, so you should take key interest in reporting that to the outside world, so all will know that yes, a new Sheriff is in town, and is indeed on top of the job and discharging his responsibilities effectively.”
The director however, commended the union for putting up the training, which he said was basically to enhance the skills of the participants, so as to be able to discharge their functions professionally in accordance with the rules and the extant regulations governing the conduct of public information officers of the FCT Administration.
He noted that was important for the participants, whom he described as his colleagues to imbibe the skills and knowledge that gained from the training, and putting them into use upon return to their various desks.
According to him: “Training is key towards enhancing productivity. And the second one is welfare of the workers. When you take care of the welfare of the workers, you definitely going to have increased productivity, and when you train a worker, his output will increase, he will actually be in a position to do the best, for the improvement of that organisation.
“In our clime particularly Nigeria, issues of training sometimes are not taken seriously, that is why we are delighted that FCT Administration considers training of staff very important.
“As professional staff, we should dictate the pace of disseminating information to the public.
If you, who are the information officers are on top of the game, you can tactically tailor the kind of communication outflow that will come out of the FCTA, and others wll follow.
“So, if information officers of the FCT Administration are able to project the administration ahead of other reporters out there, I think there will be positive reportage of FCT activities.”
Similarly, one of the speakers, Dr. Nnachi Okafor, urged information officers to always take cognisance of global best practices of public relations in the daily discharge of their duties in the FCTA.
Earlier in her remarks, the Chairperson, NUJ-FCTA Chapel, Ngozi Uloma Ufomba, explained that the training of information officers drawn from all the FCT SDAs was part of fulfilment of the campaign promises made by the present officials of the Union.
Ufomba, added that the training is anchored on, ‘Corporate Communication Strategies/Public Relations and Administrative Procedures,’ which is aimed at enhancing professional skills of Information Officers for proper reportage of the activities of FCT Administration.
While reiterating the need for the participants to make appropriate use of the initiative, she assured the training would take place in batches as others would also be selected to benefit, for the purpose of efficient and effective discharge of duties.