The Ogun Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Waheed Odusile, on Monday said that the state planned to establish a newspaper and online news platform to inform and mobilise the citizens for government policies and programmes.
Odusile made the disclosure while defending the ministry’s 2021 proposed budget before the House of Assembly Committee on Finance and Appropriation in Abeokuta.
He said that the ministry would leverage partnership initiatives with the media and allied sector to further propagate the various development projects and other activities of the government to the people.
The commissioner stressed the importance of effective information management system in a democratic setting.
He said information management often prompted informed decision on the part of the residents.
Presenting the budget for 2021, Odusile said that total expenditure was put at N600million, with N500million set aside for recurrent expenditure and N99.9million earmarked for capital projects.
The General Manager, Ogun State Television (OGTV), Mr Festus Kehinde, presenting the budget for the agency, said it had budgeted N255million for the purchase of Outside Broadcasting Van with digital satellite news gathering.
Kehinde said that it was important to procure digital equipment that would support the operations of the TV station.
The general manager said that there was a need to buy new studio equipment.
“The analogue system presently in use are over 10 years old, which can not function in the era of digitisation,” he said.
Kehinde presented a total budget of N812.3million for 2021, out of which N399.8million was earmarked for capital projects and N412.5 million proposed for recurrent expenditure, with N580million expected as revenue and subvention.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Ogun State Broadcasting Corporation (OGBC) also defended its proposed budget.
