SANDAKAN: The Diocese of Sandakan had officially established the Diocesan Social Communication Commission on Saturday, July 4 with Terrence Ngui appointed as the first Chairman of the said Commission and Airenne Gumanas as the Secretary. The inaugural meeting held at the Diocesan Meeting Room, Church Hill Road, Sandakan was well attended by representatives from all the four parishes.

Bishop Julius Dusin Gitom DD presided over the meeting and in his opening address, welcomed the representatives from all the parishes. He touched on the importance of communication in the context of the local Church. The Church should by now be able to communicate with the parishioners through the printed and electronic media, a tool of communication outside the pulpit. The world of cyberspace offers magnificent opportunities for evangelization and a platform for proclaiming the gospel. He urged the committee to explore ways whereby information can be perceived, transmitted and understood. The internet is a powerful and effective means of communication if used with competence and a clear awareness of its strength. For change to take place, there is a need for conversion as we face challenges in the new culture of communication.

Terrence Ngui who attended the regional social communication commission meeting in Sibu recently, briefed the members on the latest development of the regional commission , its set up, roles and function through a slide presentation. He also spoke on the proposed structure of the social communication both at diocesan and parish levels. Apart from that he explained in detail the process of the flow of print and electronic media and the right way in establishing the parish archive.

Representatives from other parishes shared on the development of their social communication committee. All of them had established either web sites or blogs. They hoped to be linked to the diocesan blog. All parishes are weak in archive work and agreed to place more emphasis in this area. It was also resolved that a training session on basic journalism and photography be organized before the end of the year for current parish media team and potential writers.

Before the close of the meeting, Bishop Julius was invited to launch the official diocesan blog http://newsupdatedospo. blogspot.com/