The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), Malam Muhammad Bello has craved the support and collaboration of the media.
The media, he said, has contributed to the socio-economic and political development of the country just as it has remained the conscience of the nation.
Bello stated this while receiving members of the Forum of FCT Broadcast Editors that paid him a visit in his office at Area 11, Garki I District, Abuja.
The Minister reiterated that every stakeholder in Project Nigeria has done their bit in one way or the other but the role of the media since pre-independence Nigeria cannot be over emphasised.
He recalled how members of the fourth estate of the realm encouraged his administration to take certain major decisions, saying, they have been part of his guiding principles.
The minister described his partnership with the media as robust; adding that some of his policy decisions have been greatly reinvigorated by the feedback he received from journalists covering the FCT Administration.
Bello who described the media as the eyes and ears of the society; saying, their profound knowledge of the city is one that generates a lot of vibrancy in both the public and private sphere.
He called for continuous support and collaboration from the media practitioners to strengthen institutions in the FCT Administration to enable them carryout their statutory duties, thereby taking Abuja to greater heights.
According to him, “You have been and will continue to be the eyes and the ears of the residents of the FCT. Your knowledge of the city is obviously much deeper and I have had course to follow the activities of most of your organizations, the feedback and the support you give, the vibrancy that you generate in our beautiful city and community.”
“Since I came on board as the Minister, we have tried as much as possible to convey a message to the wider community that Abuja is for all and therefore, Abuja should reflect the standard of a city that we all aspire to say it is ours. That is why in all of the policies we initiate, we try to encourage people to own it, simply because we have realized that a Minister and a team of 50 or hundred senior officials cannot run the city alone. It has to be something that all of us should consciously believe in,” he stressed.
While briefing the Forum on some of his recent activities, the Minister stated that FCT Administration would make ready for use some of the grazing reserves within the Territory, notably the ones in Paikon Kore, Karshi, Bwari, and Kuje.
Bello also disclosed details of his recent meeting with the Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) in charge of Zone 7, even as he called on the media and other FCT residents to support the concept of community policing.
“While we all applauded the police high command and all the security agencies in making our city safe, we also agreed that it is very important that we as citizens support the concept of community policing. We agreed that a lot of areas where we have barricades that are deemed to be no longer necessary could be removed to free vehicular movement,” the minister emphasised.
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