The Director of Press and Public Affairs to Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State, Gyang Bere, has implored youths in the state to use their social media handles to project the development stride of the present administration positively instead of throwing baseless falsehood and sentiments.
He stated this yesterday while responding to questions fielded by Journalists on the occasion marking the Plateau Social Media Day celebration observed by Special Advisers and Assistants to the Governor on Media in Jos, the Plateau State capital.
The DOPA said, “there are things we are expected to portray, particularly, the achievement of the current administration. We know what the government has done and we know what the social media can also do to ensure that people within and outside Plateau acquaint themselves with the development efforts of His Excellency, Barr. Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang.
“We are expected to also use the social media to ensure that we change the narrative of Plateau State. This government has come to change the narrative of Plateau State and ensure that people are acquainted with what is happening within the state.
“You are aware of the negative narrative on insecurity about Plateau State before the coming of this administration. People believed that Jos is not safe, but people are now coming into Jos to carry out their businesses without any problem”, he disclosed.
Bere, however, described Jos as the most peaceful city in the North-Central Nigeria, Northern Nigeria and the entire country Nigeria and called on the social media handles users to tell people that Jos was home for everybody to come and carry out their businesses.
He also exposed the minds of these youths on using the social media handles to create wealth instead propaganda that were detrimental to the peace of the State and development strides of Governor Caleb Mutfwang.
On his part, the Director General of the Plateau Information and Communication Technology Development Agency (PICTDA), Dominic Datong, expressed concern that everybody was now a freespace Journalist and could send any information be it verified or unverified.
He said, “any message that you needed to send online, you need to ask yourself this question; is it the truth, is it fair to everybody and would it add to the peace of this city?
“Because, when people do not come to our city, at the end of day we will lack jobs and any positive thing that would have happened in our state. We must be able to use the social media responsibly because information can go farther beyond your expectation.
“The social media connection is so enormous that, one message from a remote village in Kanke can go as far Rwanda or South Africa or America. So, we have to be careful with the use of technology”, Datong advised.
The Director General of Plateau State Environmental Protection and Sanitation Agency (PEPSA) Samuel Dapia, who was in solidarity with celebration, described the social media as a powerful tool that he has taken advantage of in carrying out his duties.
Inspite of yesterday’s occasion which coincided with the monthly sanitation, the DG said, “Social Media is very important in the execution of sanitation for us in PEPSA. It has also been very important in promoting environmental hygiene and ideas even in terms of literacy.
“It is also important to the agency because we use social media to promote even ideas on best ways and practices of waste management. It is important because social media is one of the most important tool I have taken advantage of since I became the DG.
“This is because I promote every single activity done or executed by the agency in social media. So, it is a tool that some of us are leveraging on because it is somehow cheaper than the conventional media. So, we use it to meet so many people and I join all other government appointees to celebrate this day”, Dapia highlighted.
The occasion which started with a walk from the Secretariat junction flyover to Otunko-Abbattoir overhead bridge was tagged with a theme: Uniting The Digital Space To Support Governor Mutfwang’s Good Governance Strides And Peace Efforts In Plateau State”.
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