DHAKA, Aug 29, 2017(BSS)-Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu, MP, today said the nation is stepping into a new era by introducing e-services in various sectors.
The minister said this while speaking as the chief guest at the inaugural ceremony of an online course for journalists at the auditorium of Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB) here.
The PIB and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO)’s Access to Information (A2I) wing jointly organised the event.
The minister in his speech said, “With the introduction of e-learning, PIB has brought media education to the doorsteps of journalists and digitised population.” Gradually all public services would be available on online, the minister informed the programme, adding, “People will not have to go anywhere to get public services. It will be available at their doorsteps.”
Citing different examples of online services offered by the incumbent government, including land registration, he said, “In future, it will be extended to other areas.”
Journalists should upgrade their skills to cope with the change of time, Inu said, adding, journalists have to compete with online and citizen journalists to keep themselves upgrade with the pace of time.
Urging journalists not to do politically-biased journalism, he said “We expect patriotic journalism which will play a significant role in strengthening democracy of the country.”
Judges and journalists should not act as politicians, he said, adding, they would remain as eternal sentinels of democracy.
He also said if judges and journalists take the role of politicians it will be dangerous for democracy.
“The legislature and executive may commit mistakes but if the sentinels fail to identify those the whole system will break down,” he said.
With Director General of PIB in the chair, the meeting was addressed by Secretary of the Ministry of Information Mortuza Ahmed and Chairman of Mass Communication and Journalism Department of Dhaka University Mofizur Rahman, among others.
Representatives from the A2I also spoke and gave a power point presentation explaining different aspects of the programme.