The Imo State Government has been applauded for creating a conducive environment for the smooth operations of media practitioners.
A media relations consultant, Chief Dr. Fidel Onyeneke, made the commendation in Owerri while reacting to the donation of two vehicles to the Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the Nigerian Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) in Imo State.
Chief Onyeneke said that the gesture had buttressed the importance Governor Hope Uzodinma attached to the media as a major component of good governance, under a democratic dispensation.
He explained that the media served as a veritable link between the government and the masses, adding that a boost to media activities enhanced the socio-political and economic growth of society.
Chief Onyeneke, a former Imo State Chairman of NUJ, described Governor Uzodimma as a media-friendly public officer who instituted the annual Media Award, which is the first of its kind, as a deliberate effort to improve professionalism in the practice of journalism.
He also eulogized the government for revitalizing the state-owned media houses to enable them to propagate the programs of the government as well as highlight the developmental activities in the rural areas of Imo State.
He appealed to the Governor to devote more attention to solving the major problems that had hindered the smooth transmission of Imo Broadcasting Corporation (IBC), Owerri, considering the strategic significance of the radio station in projecting Imo State into the limelight.
The former Special Adviser to the Governor on Imo Orientation Agency, however, urged the media practitioners to reciprocate the gesture of the government by shunning destructive tendencies and exhibiting a high level of professionalism in their practice, for the benefit of the state and the citizenry.