By Bashir Hassan Abubakar
The newly inaugurated Zonal Chairman of the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria, BON Zone B, Malam Umar Muhammad Shira, has pledged a renewed commitment to unity, professional excellence and development-focused broadcasting in the North-East.
Speaking shortly after the inauguration of the new leadership of Zone B, which covers the six states of the North-East, Shira thanked the national leadership of BON for the confidence reposed in the new executives and lauded colleagues across the zone for their support.
He said the inauguration was not merely a change of leadership but the beginning of a new phase aimed at strengthening collaboration among public, private, commercial and community stations, promoting continuous training and building professional networks for journalists, producers and engineers.
Shira said broadcasting in the region must go beyond entertainment to address pressing development challenges including out-of-school children, high maternal mortality, unemployment, insecurity, desertification and youth restiveness.
He called on member stations to work in synergy to tackle fake news, hate speech and quack online media practices through credible information, investigative journalism and audience participation, assuring an open-door policy and collective decision-making under his leadership.