By Patrick Obia
Media Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MPAN) Cross River State, has marked 2020 World Photography Day and inaugurate new executives in Calabar.
“Celebration of photography” as this year’s theme, flagged off at the millennium park with road walk down to Calabar Municipal Garden as photographers in their numbers display their photographic prowess on the road.
Flagging off the event, the Commissioner for Culture and Tourism Development in the State, Mr. Eric Anderson said he is happy to celebrate with photographers worldwide as well as in the State saying that, in as much as the State cherish audio, video and written records, the State also cherish pictorial records, charging photographers to use photography to tell Cross River State narrative to the world.
“It is an honour for me to be here, the second time in a roll to flag off this celebration. It is worth celebrating, there is nothing we do that we don’t try to keep records; besides written records, audio recordings, we also cherish pictorial records. So, it is a day set aside to celebrate and I’m happy we are celebrating it and also thankful to Cross River State Chapter for celebrating this day, by next year we should do same and even bigger than this.
“The impression of what the society is, is your responsibility. Beside what we talk about, besides what our thoughts are; what you show, what you send out is where people will judge us. I want to encourage us as we celebrate today, let us have the best pictures of Cross River State and tell the Cross River State story in a good light to the outside world.”
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Mfon Bassey said Cross River State is a beautiful environment for beautiful pictures, urging the image makers to make good use of it.
“As for photographers all I can say is, as Government we will make the environment beautiful, so nice and as you know, Cross River State is known for its clean and green status, so the only appeal we need to make to you is, as photographers as you are using any of these green areas, roundabouts, beautiful sites to take your pictures, don’t just destroy it. Help us to sustain it.”
The Assistant Commissioner of Police Operations, Cross River State Command, ACP Clay Chris Nwadiogbo averred that photography aides the Police in investigations and exposes other vices, promised secured atmosphere for celebration.
“In the security world, photography contributes in securing environment, it aides our investigations, it helps in exposing a lot of things. With your presence and the media, the security of the environment will be enhanced and every reasonable person is supposed to enhance it very well to ensure it secured the environment.”
To sum up the celebration, MPAN, Cross River State Chapter inaugurated it’s newly elected executives to pilot the affairs of the Association.
In an interview with CrossRiverWatch, Comrade Nsa Ekpenyong Etim, the newly elected State President said immediately he is sworn in he intend to collapse all media Practitioners in the State into one umbrella to have a common goal and to speak in one voice.
August 19 is observed as World Photography Day, which aims to inspire photographers across the planet to share a single photo with a simple purpose: to share their world with the world.
World Photo Day originates from the invention of the daguerreotype, a photographic process developed by Frenchmen Louis Daguerre and Joseph Nicephore Niepce in 1837.
See pictures below.
