By Suleiman Yakubu

The Secretary to the Government of Niger State (SSG), Alh. Abubakar Usman, has said information dissemination will be a key sector to be addressed by the administration of Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago in Niger State.
He stated this when the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mrs. Hadiza Mohammed Shiru, led a delegation of Heads of Parastatals and Agencies under her ministry for a courtesy visit at the SSG's office recently.
Alh. Abubakar Usman said that since Governor Umaru Bago is somebody who is publicity conscious, there was a need to equip all the state media outfits to enhance productivity in terms of information dissemination.
He pointed out that "we cannot do without carrying the public along; therefore, we need to revitalise our media outlets properly".
He assured the delegation that things will definitely change in a positive manner, noting that the Jama'a Forum, which used to be an interactive session in the past, would be re-introduced by the present administration to hear from the people's mouths about their problems.
He also said that the executive order by the state government will be considered so that Niger State media outfits will gain patronage from government agencies for revenue generation.
He therefore advised newsmen to be alert for better information dissemination.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mrs. Hadiza Shiru, lamented the poor state of all the media outfits in the state, including Newsline Newspapers, Radio Niger, NSTV, the Library Board, and the Book Agency.
She expressed concern over the current state of the obsolete facilities, dilapidated structures, and lack of funds, which were detrimental to the effectiveness and productivity of the media houses.
Also speaking, the Director of Information, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mrs. Hassana Joan Kpetu, appealed to the SSG to use his good office and implement the Hazard Allowance for media workers working for the state-owned media outfits as a result of the job risks they encountered on a daily basis.
The delegation included the Acting Managing Director of Newsline Newspaper, Mrs. Aisha Abubakar, and the General Manager of Radio Niger, Comrade Kabir Ibrahim, among others.

By Suleiman Yakubu

Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State has assured the people of the state of his plans to build a first-class Hajj Camp within the Minna International Airport to ease the movement of intending pilgrims from the state capital to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for Hajj.
Governor Bago, who is presently performing Hajj in Saudi Arabia, gave the assurance when he paid an unscheduled visit to the Niger State camp in Mina, Makka, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
He expressed dismay over the level of poor treatment being meted out to Niger State contingents, adding that the Niger State government would not accept such poor arrangements from the National Hajj Commission (NAHCO). He said after paying the Commission in full, they decided to give them (Nigerlites) substandard accommodation with no adequate facilities, besides being overpopulated.
He said "We are going to build a first-class Hajj camp just within the airport in Minna to reduce the hardship of Muslims, and we are in discussion with Saudi Arabian authorities so that we are going to buy about 100 gas-powered cooking buses so that pilgrims won't suffer anymore".
Governor Bago, while appealing to the pilgrims to take the hardship they were going through as an act of Allah, reminded them that pilgrimage was an act of worship that required patience and sacrifice, adding that he was also subjected to some difficulties even after paying for his Hajj under a private arrangement.
"We are appealing to Nigerites to be patient with different policies of the government that aim at bringing economic prosperity, as it is going to be tough from the beginning, but I am sure that by the grace of God, we will overcome it.
"And as people from Niger State, we are very sure that as we have started, we are going to hit the ground running, and with Allah on our side, we will succeed", he added.
He regretted, however, that the people who handled the Minna Airport project were not serious about it from the beginning because the approval was done on the eve of the last administration.