The Director General, Voice of Nigeria, Mr. Osita Okechukwu has expressed his appreciation to the Nigerian Armed Forces for their sacrifices in both internal and external operations to tackle the challenges facing the country.
Mr. Osita stated this when the Director Defence Information, Major General Benjamin Olufemi Sawyer visited the Corporate Headquarters of Voice of Nigeria on a courtesy call and as part of a tour of media houses.
He said he is not unaware that there are challenges faced by the Armed Forces, but called for more effort and critical strategic approaches towards tackling the issues of insecurity confronting the country.
VON Director General also used the opportunity to congratulate General Sawyerr on his appointment as the Director Defence Information and said before the Armed Forces Radio, Voice of Nigeria was the Radio for the Armed Forces.
” We still have to thank the Nigerian Armed Forces, we know the challenges, we know we were able to secure Liberia, we have been able to do so well internationally, in the local condition we are facing currently, I still believe the army has a solution to it, it might take long, but there is solution. It is also incumbent in us the civil population to continue to give you the needed cooperation” said the VON DG.
Responding General Sawyerr said following his appointment as the DDI, after analyzing the task before him, he decided to identify with Voice of Nigeria as a major stakeholder to project the image of the institute of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, correct any wrong perception of the military, with its wide reach outside the country and to also correct wrong images of Nigeria that may exist in the minds of those in diaspora.
He appreciated Voice of Nigeria for the programme BEYOND BULLETS: Road Map to Peace for projecting the activities of the Nation’s Armed Forces which has impacted positively on the fight against insurgency in the North East and other operations and the Armed Forces elsewhere.
He also appreciated Voice of Nigeria and its management and staff in the area of cooperation with the armed forces while calling on the management to further build the capacity of the Staff of Armed Forces Radio.
“I found Voice of Nigeria as one of the critical stakeholders that I must, and have to relate with in order to protect the image of my institution and to change negative perceptions of the military so that Nigerians that we serve will be appreciative of us. And equally too our image outside of the country which the Voice of Nigeria has the greatest reach will be changed for good and for the better”
“It is also important Sir that I meet you (DG VON), I appreciate your wealth of experience and knowledge, to also appreciate Voice of Nigeria for the programs they have been doing, especially the programme BEYOND BULLETS ; Road Map to Peace, which you broadcast and which ahs positively impacted on the operations the armed forces conduct especially in the North Eastern part of the country, today this contribution has effectively impacted on the results we are seeing today”
” Today the Boko Haram fighters are turning out in their numbers, weapons and family and we hope that Nigerians will support that initiative that has taken years to get to this point. Equally we have the Armed Forces Radio which is still a young radio station, we will appreciate if you can give us capacity building to bring our staff here to have hands on training that will assist us develop our expertise in the area of broadcasting. We Wil continue to seek support for the armed forces of Nigeria” said DDI Sawyerr.
General Sawyerr also pointed out that the media is a very powerful instrument that coordinate all the elements of national power to bring about development.
Responding on the area of training and capacity building raised by the DDI, the Director Training, Voice of Nigeria, Mr. Ben Shamang said Voice of Nigeria which has be a partner of the Nigerian Military, will continue to collaborate with the armed Forces to change the narrative and aid the Armed forces in their quest to end insecurity in the country while calling on the Media to support the troops at the Frontline.
Also speaking at the occasion, the Executive Director, Voice of Nigeria, Mr. Ahaziah Suleiman acknowledged the army for a good collaboration run so far with Voice of Nigeria and calls on the Armed forces Radio to drive listeners by being the first to break the news on the activities of the Armed Forces on the Radio station so that it becomes a reference point for newsmakers.
Nnenna.O
