Dhaka, Aug 23 (V7N)- Information Minister Andaliv Rahman Partha has said the media must play an important role in presenting all government activities to the people in a credible and transparent manner.
He made the remarks while speaking to reporters at the Secretariat on Sunday morning after being welcomed with flowers on his first day in office and outlining the ministry's activities.
The Information Minister said democracy belongs to everyone and the media, as the fourth pillar of democracy, is no exception. He said both the media and the Ministry of Information have a major responsibility to inform people about government activities accurately and credibly.
Andaliv Rahman Partha stressed the need to uphold the country's history, traditions, cultural and religious values, as well as the spirit of the Liberation War. He called for moving away from divisive politics and building greater unity and harmony among the people.
Referring to the past 17 years, he said the media faced various forms of control, which restricted journalists' ability to work independently in many areas. Despite those challenges, he said, the media continued to bring reports of irregularities, torture and the country's democratic crisis before the public.
Speaking about the media's role during the July Movement, the minister said the contribution of journalists and media outlets to the movement cannot be belittled.
He said the Ministry of Information's responsibility is not to control the media, but to coordinate with media organizations in accordance with established rules.
The minister said repairing the damage to state institutions and systems over the past 17 years and establishing a new system would take time. He stressed that lessons must be learned from previous mistakes so that they are not repeated.
Andaliv Rahman Partha said the people have entrusted the government with responsibility through their vote and therefore have the right to know what the government is doing and why.
He said protecting public interests and properly communicating government activities to the people are among the key responsibilities of the concerned authorities.
"We will all work together — that is the message," the minister said, emphasizing the need for cooperation between media professionals and ministry officials to ensure that government activities are properly communicated to the public.
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