Un Diplomat Advises Journalists To Use Simple Words, Avoid Common Errors For Effective Communication.
A retired United Nations (UN) diplomat and veteran media practitioner, Mr. Segun Omolayo has called on media and public relations practitioners to imbibe the use of simple and correct sentences for effective communication.
Speaking at a Seminar organized by the Ekiti State Government for Information Officers in the State Civil Service, Mr. Omolayo highlighted common mistakes writers make to include redundancies, malapropism, faulty parallelism, wrong use of parts of speech and tenses, reckless capitalization and faulty punctuation.
Mr Omolayo analyzed the applicable principles and rules guiding the use of English and suggested possible improvements with copious examples, drawing attention to editing sensitivities and nuances that good writers must be mindful of.
He stressed that since the world is fast becoming a global village where news reports are capable of spreading across the globe simultaneously, It has become imperative for journalists and other mass communicators to keep up with the universally acceptable standard of English Language for effective communication with audiences around the planet.
In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary in the state Ministry of Information, Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Kola Ajumobi said that the focus of government is to build its workers’ capacity for optimum output, adding that training of workers is continuous in order to keep them abreast of their responsibilities and enhance efficiency.
Mr. Ajumobi advised Information Officers in the State to always avail themselves of government’s program and policies in order to boost their capacity to explain issues to the public.
Ajumobi stressed that Information Officers, as a link between government and the people, must always look presentable, radiate confidence and read voraciously to make them capable of earning the trust of the people and achieve the desired aim.
