Benue information ministry don arrange two day workshop for information officers and media aides.
Di Benue State Ministry of Information and Orientation don finish one two-day workshop for people wey dey handle government information and media work for different ministries, departments, and government offices for di state.
Di workshop wey start Thursday, September 10, finish Friday, September 11, 2026, for Benue State Planning Commission Hall, inside State Secretariat for Makurdi. People wey dey work for government information side, university teachers and senior government workers come together for di meeting make dem talk about how government fit pass information give di people, how dem fit handle media matter, how dem fit control gbege and how dem fit fight wrong tori wey people dey spread.
Di Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Chief Solomon Iorpev, na im lead di programme. As e open di workshop, e explain say na di Commissioner for Information and Orientation dey responsible for official announcements and other tori wey commot from Benue State Government. E say na Chief Press Secretary to di Governor dey speak for di Governor side.
Iorpev say Information Officers for make people know about di work, plans and programmes wey their own ministries, departments and government offices dey do. E say political party publicity secretaries na dem get di work for party publicity matter.
E also explain say Media Aides na dem suppose help political office holders make people know wetin dem dey do. But e say Media Aides no suppose enter di work wey career Information Officers get for other government offices.
Di Commissioner talk say government information work don get problem before because some work wey career Information Officers suppose dey do don enter Media Aides hand. But e say government dey try arrange di matter again make everybody return to di correct place.
Iorpev beg make training no stop. E say Information Officers for dey learn new things and improve dia work because today social media fit carry tori go everywhere inside small time, and wrong tori fit cause plenty gbege.
E also talk say Governor Hyacinth Alia go soon look di matter of how government fit make life better for Information Officers. Di matter include money wey dem suppose get, Directorate cadre and oda things wey concern dia welfare.
Some teachers from Rev. Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu University for Makurdi and some senior government workers come teach for di workshop. Among dem na Professor Rodney Chiboh, Professor Daniel Chile, Professor Benjamin Ogbu, Professor Andrew Ogah and Dr. Terfa Igbe.
Di Chairman of di Benue State House of Assembly committee wey dey look Information matter, di Head of Service, di Permanent Secretary for di Ministry of Information and Orientation and di Directors for di ministry sef come attend di programme.
Mrs. Tersoo Adamu, wey be Director of Press for di ministry, talk about di work of Information Officers. E say dem na one big bridge wey dey join government and di people.
E say Information Officers for sabi dia work and di rules wey guide di work well-well. Dis one go help dem give di people correct tori about wetin government dey do, di plans wey government get and di programmes wey government dey carry out.
Professor Daniel Chile beg Benue State Government make dem dey talk wit di people well well about government work and programmes.
Chile say when government dey explain wetin e dey do from time to time, e go make people understand matter better and e go reduce quarrel and wrong understanding.
E say tori no suppose na government alone dey talk. Government sef for hear wetin di people dey talk, know dia wahala and allow dem ask questions when dem no understand something.
Di university teacher also say government for get one good way wey people fit use send dia complaints and advice give government. Journalists sef, e say, fit help for dis work so dat di distance between government and di people go reduce.
Dr. Terfa Igbe talk about how government people suppose handle gbege and answer quick when wahala start. E warn say social media don make tori dey waka very fast.
E say small matter fit start one place and before you know am, e don turn big wahala because people don add things wey no dey inside di original tori.
Igbe say Information Officers for sabi how dem go answer when gbege start, but dem no for rush go talk before dem confirm wetin really happen.
E warn say Information Officer no for carry tori waka just because everybody dey talk am for street. E say if one tori dey trend, e no mean say na true.
E also beg senior people wey dey handle government tori, especially di Commissioner for Information and Orientation and di Chief Press Secretary to di Governor, make dem work hand in hand so dat government no go dey give people different versions of di same matter.
Igbe mention di matter wey concern former Anambra Governor and 2027 presidential hopeful Peter Obi, after reports say dem no allow am enter one IDP camp for Benue. E say when government people dey give different explanations about one matter, e fit create gbege wey no suppose dey.
E also tell Information Officers make dem first ask dia oga for permission before dem release any official tori about work wey dia ministry, department or government office dey do.
Professor Benjamin Ogbu, Dean of Faculty of Communication and Legal Studies for Rev. Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu University, talk about how Information Officers fit help people understand government plans and programmes.
Ogbu say Information Officers no just get work for carry tori give people. Dem for also explain government plans and programmes for language wey ordinary person fit understand.
E say if government dey use big big words wey people no understand, di main purpose of passing di tori don already miss road.
Professor Rodney Chiboh teach di participants how dem fit write press release well. E explain say press release no be exactly di same thing like normal news tori because e dey normally show di side and position of di organisation wey release am.
But e warn journalists say dem no for just take everything wey dey inside press release as true. Dem for check di tori by demself before dem publish am.
Chiboh also talk about how some people don begin use artificial intelligence to help dem prepare press releases. But e warn Information Officers make dem check di tori wey AI produce very well because AI fit make mistake or give wrong information.
Professor Andrew Ogah talk about good behaviour and honesty for government communication work.
E beg Information Officers make dem always give correct tori, make dem careful when dem dey collect information and make dem no twist matter.
E say when government information people dey do dia work well and honestly, people go trust dem more. And once people trust dem, government go fit communicate wit dem better.
Di two day workshop therefore give di Information Officers and Media Aides chance to learn more about dia work, how for handle media matter, how for answer when gbege start, how for stop wrong tori and how for make government and di people understand each oda better.