From Paul Osuyi, Asaba
Since 1991 when Delta State was created out of the defunct Bendel State, journalists in the oil-rich state hopped from one rented apartment to another as temporary secretariat/press centre.
Pioneer efforts to get a permanent secretariat for the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Delta State council, were all in vain largely due to political factors.
But that has become a thing of the past as the state government, on October 28, handed over a furnished secretariat to the union.
Located along the highbrow Maryam Babangida Way in Asaba, the state capital, features of the secretariat include a 250-capacity hall, borehole, generator, office spaces, cyber cafe, garden and rooms.
Our correspondent learnt that it was a tedious journey to achieve the completion and furnishing of the edifice, as the project suffered setbacks from 2014 when the foundation stone was laid by the immediate past governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan.
Uduaghan also allocated the plot of land to the NUJ after the union, on two occasions, was relocated from earlier approved land as a result of political interests.
Although construction started after Uduaghan, accompanied by the then president of Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), Femi Adesina, laid the foundation, it soon ran into trouble as a result of litigation over the ownership of the land.
The development halted construction to avoid contempt of court, until the incumbent administration, led by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa intervened to resolve the matter, before it was completed.
Inaugurating the secretariat, Okowa commended the media for adequately reporting government activities.
Okowa expressed appreciation to the NUJ in the state for the cordial relationship between the media and the state government, saying, “We have had a reasonable level of cooperation and they know that we do not gag them; we work as friends.
“This building is seated on very prime land and I thank God for that, because the press deserves that. The more you inform the people, the more educated the people are, the more functional our democracy.”
He seized the opportunity to call on government at all levels and other agencies to protect the freedom of the press to enable it play its role of strengthening democracy and good governance in the country.
According to Okowa, the independence of the press is very important in a growing society: “I also urge the press that, in the face of all pressures, they must try as much as possible to inform, and inform appropriately.
“The media must ensure that the information that gets out there to our people is the right information and that information is justiceable at every point in time.
“The press can always stand their ground. Sometimes, politicians or other people can put you under pressure but I believe that the press can always stand their ground, as long as you know that you have done your investigation and that what you are speaking about is actually true.”
National president of NUJ, Chris Isiguzo, who described the secretariat as imposing, expressed gratitude to the state government, stating that the union “will take good care of this structure so that the good legacies of this administration will be preserved for those who will come after us.”
Isiguzo also thanked Okowa for assembling the best of media professionals who are doing well in coordinating the media for his government.
“The Commissioner for Information, Charles Aniagwu, Olise Ifeajika and of course the SSG, Chief Patrick Ukah, are media eggheads who we hold highly,” he said.
Also, immediate past chairman of Delta State NUJ, under whose tenure construction work started, Norbert Chiazor, commended Okowa for completing the project.
Chiazor, now executive assistant (media) to the governor, also expressed gratitude to Uduaghan for his contributions to the building of the NUJ secretariat and described the development as fulfilling and unforgettable.
Current chairman of Delta NUJ, Michael Ikeogwu, thanked the state government for building the secretariat, noting that journalists were happy that the project has finally come to fruition.
Ikeogwu told the governor that what his administration did for journalists by delivering the secretariat was enormous.
“For your information, this singular act of putting a roof over our heads and taking us out of the street to become landlords has etched your name in the sands of times.
“You have given us a name and identity, you have taken us out of ‘Egypt’ to our Promised Land. You have put unquenchable smile on the faces of members and defeated the imagination of naysayers praying that we continue to wander about as nomads.
“That you completed the building project would have given us enough reason to celebrate, but going ahead to tastefully furnish the centre is another monumental achievement that must be counted for your administration.
“I herby, on behalf of the members of our great union, express our profound appreciation to you and the government of Delta State for this gift of a press centre,” he said.
Ikeogwu assured the governor that journalists would remain apolitical, noting, however, that it will not deprive the union from “telling the public what the administration of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has done for the good people of Delta State and other individuals that have in one way or the other contributed to the growth of the society.”