Lucky Efese 

BENIN CITY-The operational management of the Benin Office of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, has sought strategic partnership with the executive and members of the Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, Edo State Council, towards disaster control, prevention and management in the state.

Speaking when he led other senior officials of the agency on a courtesy visit to the NUJ secretariat in Benin City, the Edo State Head of Operations, Kenoma Ojuederie, said that having resumed in December 2024 in Benin, and in line with the vision of the agency, he decided to reach out to critical stakeholders in the State to ensure disaster control and management.

Ojuederie asserted that NUJ press Centre was the first port of call since journalists are critical stakeholders  that played pivotal roles in the dissemination of viable and accurate information on disaster control and management, stressing that the visit was also to build and strengthen existing relationship to achieve greater results.

He added that his agency remains accountable and prepared to collaborate with critical stakeholders in the areas of disaster management to achieve the purpose of its establishment, noting that the visions and missions of the Director General are aimed at building relationship and collaboration with critical stakeholders to achieve success.

Responding, the NUJ chairman, Comr. Festus Alenkhe, thanked the Head of Operations and his team for the visit, stating however, the necessity of a healthy collaboration between the journalists body first respondents in disaster management and NEMA towards achieving the desired results in disaster control and management in the state.

Alenkhe assured the agency of Edo journalists’ readiness to partner the agency towards ensuring effective and efficient disaster control and management system in the state, especially when it  became apparently that journalists also report disaster incident informations to the agency as well as the members of the public.

The NUJ chairman however urged the agency to organise routine training programmes for journalists for purposes of disseminating viable and accurate information to the public.

On the entourage of the Head of Operations during the visit included

Abia Ufok Samuel: Assistant Chief Search and Rescue Officer, (ACSRO),

Queen Evi Unwe: Assistant Chief Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Officer

Dominic Okure: Senior Executive (SEO) Officer.