Dormant Govt. websites are disturbing: Simataa

OTJIWARONGO, 20 APR – Dormant and rarely updated websites of government ministries and agencies are disturbing, Minister of Information and Communication Technology (MICT), Stanley Simataa has said.
He was speaking at a one-day consultative meeting with public relations officers (PROs) of several government ministries and regional and local authority councils at Otjiwarongo on Friday.
More than 30 PROs from the north and north-eastern regional councils and their local authorities were present at the meeting.
Simataa, who did not mention those ministries that fail to update their website, said he is disturbed to see websites carrying outdated photos of ministers and deputy ministers who were reshuffled in February this year.
“Some websites still carry photos of old ministers and deputy ministers who are at different ministries now, yet we have employed and pay you a monthly salary as PROs,” he said.
The minister said updating websites and handling publications of government ministries are supposed to be the core and primary tasks of a PRO in an institution.
He also encouraged PROs to always respond to general enquiries about their institutions timely, but with accurate information.
“You must have the ability to manage the media and judge the type of information needed to be given out, since you are the bridge between your institution and the general public,” he said.
Simataa wants PROs in Government to be “disciples who are preaching” about the migration from analogue systems to digital information communication means.
He also wants to see PROs become approachable by the media, as well as to start to formulate radio and television short programmes that discuss projects of government achievements on a weekly basis.
Former ICT minister, Tjekero Tweya, held similar discussions with PROs in Otjiwarongo in July last year, and asked that them to develop and/or update websites of all local and regional councils on daily or weekly basis.
Otjozondjupa Regional Governor, Otto Ipinge on his part said most PROs of regional and local authorities are not known to the community members they are supposed to serve.
“I am surprised today to learn that most of our regional and local authority councils have PROs, because I hardly hear from you communicating the services being delivered by your institutions,” he said.
Ipinge then called on the spokespeople in Government to be foot soldiers of their institutions and inform stakeholders on time about development activities coming and those completed.
He said PROs should become popular by collecting and disseminating information between their institutions and the general public, than to be confined to their offices.
Ipinge also asked those PROs who attended the meeting, to be able to write good statements and speeches.
MICT Permanent Secretary, Mbeuta Ua-Ndjarakana and officials of the Namibia Central Intelligence Services, and the Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, amongst others, also attended the meeting.
NAMPA