CEPEJ MEDIA APPRECIATION DAY

AN ADDRESS BY COMRADE SHERIFF MULADE, THE NATIONAL COORDINATOR OF CENTER FOR PEACE AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE (CEPEJ) AT THE HEADQUARTERS OFFICE IN UGOLO-OKPE BY OSUBI AIRPORT NEAR WARRI, DELTA STATE AT THE CEPEJ MEDIA APPRECIATION DAY, HELD ON THE 7TH OF JANUARY, 2020.

Respected invited guests, Gentlemen of the Press, Ladies and gentlemen.

On behalf of the Board, Patrons, Management and Staff of Center for Peace and Environmental Justice (CEPEJ), I want to sincerely welcome all of us here present and your colleagues to the year 2020 who couldn't make it to CEPEJ's office today and I also want to thank all the media practitioners for gracing and this important meeting and sharing with us your experiences and opinions.

A big thank goes to Delta Broadcasting Service, DBS Warri where we started our media advocacy from, TVC News, Channels Television, AIT, NTA, Crown and Poko FM, Rize FM, Quest FM and TV, my own Gbaramatu Voice, Focal Point, Fresh Angle, Tracknews, Niger Delta Mirror, Lebirator, well as Egbema voice, Vanguard, This Day, Tribune, Sun, newspapers, and of course Asaba Metro, amongst others too numerous for your efforts towards publicising the works of CEPEJ at the local and international levels.

We appreciate you deeply for your tireless efforts and contributions by visiting the riverine communities several times to capture and confirm the good works this NGO has done and is doing in those difficult geographical terrains. The Press has helped us in publicising our call to the Delta State Government to create a Coastal Areas Development Agency, CADA, that will pilot a blue print for the development of the riverine communities. We commend the expertise and professionalism with which the media have communicated CEPEJ's messages to a large audience far and near.

We are impressed by the interventionist roles played by the Press in peace building towards sustainable development in Nigeria and other parts of Africa. The way you informed, educated and entertained the people, helped to influence the way people think and make decisions.

I want to use this medium to charge all media practitioners to expose the challenges facing the riverine communities, the many sufferings of our people in terms of lack of good and accessible roads, lack of drinkable water, lack of electricity supply, quality education, health facilities and other infrastructural facilities, silting Rivers due to lack of dredging, air and water pollution from oil spills, poor maintenance of the few available facilities, and lack of community funding amongst others.

We appeal to all media outfits to continue with the good work to affect lives positively directly and indirectly, speak out and to tell the world only the truth about issues in and around Nigeria at all times, and shun fake and hate news to avoid over heating the polity.

Finally, ladies and gentlemen, an event like this cannot happen overnight. The wheels started rolling weeks ago with proper planning and a bird's eye for details. We have been fortunate to be backed by a team of very competent, highly motivated and dedicated staff, Management and Board members who know their jobs and are result-oriented.

I cannot thank everyone enough for your individual involvement and willingness to take on and complete tasks beyond your comfort zones. We are indeed very grateful.

Ladies and gentlemen of the Press, we also want to inform you that CEPEJ's Media have been operational with local and international news, leveraging on the informatively rich mainstream media. CEPEJ media will be more visible in the media space this year to join in the call for a stronger Delta, support advocacy for development, good governance, poverty eradication, peace building and security.

We thank you for being with us today and it is our pleasure to host you here at CEPEJ's Headquarters.

Thank you and God bless.