The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Journalism

  • The small matter of Mrs. Rosulu

    News judgment is one of the finer aspects of journalism. It is particularly so in newspapering. You may have the best nose for news, you may be able to track down the news like a well-trained hound can sniff out contrabands at the ports; you may be able to piece a story together better than the best tailors can sew; great.

    But Hardball asks: who can tell the stories that make it big especially on that ‘little’ front page of a newspaper? Even in other news pages, what story should take precedence above the other? Remember that the bigger a story is considered to be, the more prominence it gets in terms of size of its headline and the amount of news-space afforded it.

    Hardball had long posited that the work of the journalist is perhaps the ‘craziest’ in the world for the simple reason that after he is done with his daily work, he puts it up in the public domain for the whole world to debate and adjudicate upon. This is as opposed to most other professionals who make an especial effort to encrypt their daily work and keep away from the public as much as possible. Nigeria’s public servants even take an oath of secrecy to ensure that the so-called work they are supposed to do on behalf of the public is kept secret and away from the public.

    So what happens when an editor of a national newspaper finds that a story he has tucked in somewhere on page five is a major front page story for another national paper? This is news judgment bleep. It happens all the time. And that is the reason Hardball has taken up this small matter of Mrs. Ronke Rosulu, a former high court registrar who was recently jailed 10 years.

    Now this story has been made ‘small’ and almost insignificant  because it was ‘cut’ small (to about five paragraphs) and tucked deep in the last news pages of most national newspapers.

    But it is the kind of news that makes Hardball’s head swoon he probably would have found space for it on the front page because he thinks it a block-buster of a long story that has found an earth-shattering denouement.

    Let’s try piecing it together: Mrs. Ronke Rosulu was until last year a Lagos High Court registrar. She must be a ranking one because as at last year she had put in 34 years on the job. She is also a mother of four children. Going by her conviction, she had 10  years ago, colluded with a certain detainee, Fred Ajudua and others to defraud another detainee, a certain Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi, of the sum of $3300, 000.

    Now here is a registrar, a keeper of court records colluding with someone who can be described as Nigeria’s obtainer-in-chief, Fred Ajudua, to obtain another inmate.

    Then again, the victim (aka mugu), Gen. Bamayi was Nigeria’s former Chief of Army. The question could also be asked: where did this General earn the huge sum with which he purportedly sought to buy his freedom proper prosecution?

    You can see, dear reader, that it is indeed a 10-year-old story fit for Nollywood high drama. But alas, it has come to an end as a small matter, earning only five short paragraphs.

  • The Economist’s neo-colonial journalism

    ‘Prejudice is a distasteful time saver. You can, under its guise, form opinions without having to get the facts’—E. B. White

    Earlier last week, some national newspapers published a culled report attributed to The Economist, a London-based weekly magazine. The title of the piece as printed nationally read ”Ambode lacks solution to Lagos gridlock, robberies.” To the magazine’s specious and belated editorial judgment, the Lagos state helmsman lacks the panacea to the traffic congestion and alleged robberies that, in its blinkered view, were plaguing the state.

    The Economist in its reported latest issue states: “Lagos is a hub for investors in Africa – it is a bigger economy in its own right than most countries on the continent, so this is of serious concern. The state’s former governor, Babatunde Fashola, who left office after elections in March, was lauded for improving traffic and security…. He curbed dangerous motorbike taxis and brought local ‘area boys’ (street children), under control. Cars were terrified into order by a state traffic agency, LASTMA, whose bribe-hungry officers flagged down offending drivers.” “…. Nigerians are migrating to Lagos en masse in search of work in a worsening economy, his office adds… Mr. Ambode cut the powers of traffic controllers by banning them from impounding cars….”

    The report as republished adds: “Reform in a culture riddled with corruption is never easy. Mr. Ambode’s office says the measure was intended to create a more “civil society”. …. The biggest concern is that the gridlock is a sign of a breakdown in relations between security forces, government agencies and the new governor….” Ordinarily, one would have expected a supposed 172-year-old magazine to be more circumspect and exact in statistical and graphical detailing of the alleged robberies it claimed had been plaguing the state since the administration of Ambode came on board barely five months and some days ago. But it failed woefully in this regard by just giving a generalised rather than giving specific examples of robberies; if only to show that the magazine knows what it is writing about. Also, neither did the magazine reflect the current state of traffic situation in the state that has drastically improved in its so-called latest edition. What a stale presentation displayed as current reality!

    While it could not be denied that traffic was hectic at a point due to the civility of Governor Ambode on cosmopolitan Lagos. He directed that motorists in the state should be treated with politesse, as is the case in London and which led to brief hiccups that has since been addressed: As a responsive governor, Ambode understandably at a recent parley with stakeholders in the transport sector said: ”While we try to be civil, this is only for the law- abiding citizens of the state.” Thereafter, his directive on enforcement with human face has led to improvement in traffic and environmental orderliness in the state, which the magazine failed to take into account in its unbalanced and unfair report.

    The Lagos helmsman’s attempt at trying to treat beloved residents of Lagos with civility should not be misconstrued as a weakness, lack of will power or a deliberate attempt at shirking away from statutory responsibility to the over 21 million inhabitants of the cosmopolitan state. After all, he is aware of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in section14 (2b) which provides that the ”security and welfare of the people shall be the primary responsibility of government.” The governor has unwaveringly vowed to sustain this provision in different fora in the state without compromise. The reality as at today which The Economist report shamelessly ignored is that the situation has drastically improved.

    It is wrong at this stage to compare Ambode’s administration with that of Fashola. With the benefit of hindsight, the former governor bountifully reaped from laudable institutions/projects including the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and LASTMA bequeathed to him by indefatigable Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. By the time Fashola left office, some of them were in weakened conditions as attested to by The Economist, which described LASTMA officials under Fashola as ‘bribe-hungry officers.’

    The Economist did a disservice to Fashola when it also described his LASTMA modus of operation thus: ”Cars were ‘terrified’ into order by a state traffic agency.”

    Is it possible for traffic enforcement officers in London to ‘terrify’ motorists under the guise of discharging their duties?  This is not possible as their society is that of human rights while the magazine is advocating animal rights for Lagosians. What a double standard! To prevent these inherited ‘terrific officers’ of Fashola’s LASTMA from illegally feasting on beloved Lagosians, Ambode adopted the more civilised method of booking traffic infraction rather than a frightening approach to traffic enforcement, which in the magazine’s view is good for Africans. Now that LASTMA officers have been re-orientated under Ambode to embrace a humane approach, Lagosians can heave a sigh of relief.

    Contrary to The Economist report that the current Lagos governor has been making excuses, the truth is that he has taken the bull by the horn. This belated hypocritical report of The Economist is nothing but neo-colonial journalism aimed at ambushing, blackmailing and stampeding the government of Lagos state. The attempt, under the guise of playing the globally recognised watchdog role of journalism, seeks to unduly incite and influence Lagosians, without success, against the governor they freely voted for in April. The magazine failed unabashedly because its report on Lagos is only current as far as its date of publication is concerned. Content-wise, it is stale having failed to reflect the sweeping improvements in the realm of traffic control and more importantly security amongst others in the state under Ambode.

    It is sad that apart from improving traffic and security situations in Lagos, the magazine did not beam its editorial searchlight on the commendable efforts so far made by Ambode to put the state on the right track and make it more investment -friendly to the world at large. He has no doubt stabilised finances of the state through re-engineering that led to reduction in cost of governance, allowing government to save N3 billion every month. The era of inflated contract awards is gone. This gives him room to have more funds being deployed into capital projects including guaranteeing funds for newly established Employment Trust Fund (ETF) that he promised youths during electioneering campaign.

    Despite paucity of funds since his assumption of office, particularly the fact that the immediate past government spent over 80 per cent of the 2015 budget before he assumed office, Ambode has consistently met its obligations to workers, pensioners and other inhabitants of the state. On security, Ambode has established an integrated Security and Emergency control platform that has smoothened security coordination in the state. Contrary to baseless insinuations of friction with security agencies by The Economist, Ambode has bought and donated high-tech equipment and vehicles of various needs to security agencies in the state to boost their crime combat efforts.

    He also mobilised the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to donate almost N1billion that is being deployed to tackle security issues in the state.

    On the health front, Ambode ab initio realised the need for a healthy citizenry. That goaded him to providing 20 Mobile Intensive Care Unit ambulances to complement the existing 16 across the state. He also provided additional 26 Transport Ambulances with equally newly installed 22 Power Generating sets ranging from 350 – 500 KVA in General Hospitals across the state.

    The governor also procured 26 Mobile X-Ray machines. He granted approval for the recruitment of more paramedic staff and special medical coordinators to ensure 24- hour service in our health facilities. On road infrastructure, the Lagos helmsman’s efforts should have attracted the attention of The Economist magazine but for their duplicity of editorial judgment. Amongst other roads, the Ejigbo-Ikotun road, Okota-Cele road, Metalbox road and Acme road in Ikeja are currently being rehabilitated; work has started on streets in Oshodi, Mushin, Agege, Yaba, Dopemu, Akowonjo, Ikeja, Ebute-Metta, Isolo, Ikorodu, Okota and Victoria-Island despite their not being captured in the Appropriation Law for 2015. Ambode has reportedly so far rehabilitated and maintained more than 181 roads across the state including federal roads.

    On the domestic front, one considers it a flawed journalistic practice that this foreign magazine’s report was accorded undue prominence in few national newspapers without reflecting the ongoing empirical Lagos situation on especially traffic control and security. It is a sad commentary for global journalism that an otherwise respected magazine could be criticizing a hardworking Nigerian governor for ulterior motives that before long would soon come to fore. Could this be hatchet job from disgruntled politically ungrateful elements?

    Whatever it is, this marked a significant dent on the image of The Economist. Simply because the magazine holds too rigidly to erroneous facts that veiled unscrupulous elements gave to it about Lagos, it has unprofessionally ignored the timeous principle in news reporting thereby whimsically foreclosing evidence of empirical improvements in the centre of excellence- that might have changed its warped position.

    To the editorial team of The Economist, it would not be immodest to state that their conceited report against the Lagos government makes it much easier to detect their hypocrisy. Theirs is journalistic neo-colonialism of the highest order.

    • Mobolaji Sanusi is Managing Director of LASAA

  • Journalism without conscience: Call for action

    I confess to a hidden pain: I miss the newsroom. I love the newsroom; its organized madness; its unconventional setup. First, the newsroom of the analogue era: the clanging and clattering of the typewriters.  But I have jumped the gun. In the morning and midday, the newsroom is serene and sane, too sedate for a restless soul. But as the mid-day gives way to afternoon, the newsroom starts coming alive.

    The foot soldiers in the endless war of gathering materials and writing history in a hurry for posterity start finding their ways into the newsroom, armed with the day’s materials meant for tomorrow’s headlines.  By now the commanders – the line editors and other top editorial chiefs have taken or are taking their seats in readiness for the day’s production battle. Yes, it is a battle, one that must be won.  For the paper must be produced and must be taken to bed and must be on the newsstands by tomorrow morning.

    During the analogue era, the typewriter is the AK47 of the foot soldier called the reporter. Oh! No I loved reporting. I loved being a reporter. Perhaps, the reason for the awards while one was in the newsroom. They remain to be cherished for life. Now the clanging and clattering of typewriter is becoming a soothing music to the ear- all hands are on typewriters. Soon editors who are on edge to meet the deadlines and cast the headlines start barking orders as if they are on the parade ground. At one corner, the big television set is blaring the latest news and a reporter is on hand monitoring development, another is sitting by the radio, yet another has a midget tape close to the ear and scribbling away- he’s transcribing a major interview that will make all the difference on the newsstands tomorrow.

    Inside a fairly large cubicle, one of the two or three doting the vast hall, that is the newsroom, some senior editorial members, call them the egg-heads, are putting their heads together- these Generals in the battlefield called the newsroom are brainstorming over the events of the day to determine the stories that will make the front page, the headlines that will sell the stories and the pictures that will be most striking and most topical.

    At another cubicle could be found the hatchet men called the sub-editors. A sub-editor is in his own world. He is the one who can put a knife (read pen) through a 400-word story written by the reporter and trim it to less than 250 words and still retains the essence, the beauty, the message and all the five-Ws and H in the story. Sub- editors are the silent and the unsung heroes of the newsroom. A newspaper that is blessed with good sub-editors is the one that is blessed with great newspaper with elegant, beautiful and cultivated language; it is the newspaper in which errors are at the barest minimum.

    If such newspaper is blessed with a first grade production team, then it has gotten it all. In another cubicle in that newsroom is the production team. These guys conceive, plan and produce the newspaper, they plan the pages– in the analogue age, it was cut and paste, before producing the films that will now be taken to the press for printing. In a daily newspaper, that was done all night and by morning the paper is ready, hot fresh with hot news and ready for the newsstands.

    In the digital age, what has changed are the technology and the tools of production and facilities for communication.  In this digital age, a reporter could actually write his story, send it online to his sub-editor and just stroll in to the newsroom.  His sub- editor could also edit from the comfort of his home and send online to the production editor.  The organized chaos of the newsroom is still there but technology has made the production process a lot easier. And much less laborious.

    For the print media, technology may have changed the phases and face of production, but it has not in any disturbing way, inflicted negative impact on content in the context of compliance with journalism ethics. For the print media, credibility remains the watchword, even in the face of stiff competition and shrinking market.

    But for New Journalism, defined by online publications and what has come to be known as the social media, it is another kettle of fish. Let’s get it right from here. This is not a general thumbs down for this latest genre of the profession. It came with a lot of advantages, one of them being its instantaneous nature- you are reading, viewing or hearing as events are unfolding.

    This is also not a blanket condemnation of practitioners of the new journalism. Many online publications and bloggers have demonstrated professionalism and commendable conduct beyond what may be ascribed to professionals working on a platform that enable you to have the news on the go.

    But this cannot be said of a whole lot of online publications, blogs and other social media users who have turned their platforms to a veritable avenue of blackmail, a tool of extortion and medium of getting even with enemies, real or perceived.

    Journalism as a profession is at a critical juncture. Practitioners and other stakeholders must come together to chart the way forward and draw up a new Code of Conduct that will accommodate the peculiarities of new journalism. I am an apostle of press freedom and anything that will tamper with that freedom must be resisted.

    But then the freedom to tell the news ends where other citizens’ rights start. As practitioners,     we owe it a duty to the society that the innocent are not injured in the course of our trade.

    The easy entry and easy exit nature of online publications makes the challenge a herculean one. Now, professional blackmailers, cub reporters who did not earntheir first promotion in a reputable media setting, and, in fact, people without journalism or communication training at all have taken over this platform  parading themselves as publishers and wrecking psychological havoc on individuals and ruining reputations that take decades to build. In the final analysis, they are ruining the integrity of citizens whose activities are capable of deepening the economy, boost employment and promote Nigeria to a higher level in the committee of nations. Many of these so-called publishers perpetrate this crime with so much impunity assured that everything in our system is configured to make them get away without even a slap on the wrist.

    This trend needs to be arrested. Press freedom does not include freedom to publish falsehood; to impugn on people’s integrity and people’s reputation without any justifiable reason(s). Nigerians deserve to be protected from the onslaught of these morally challenged persons parading themselves as publishers and inflicting harm on fellow citizens in the name of journalism.

    A fundamental way out of this ignominious and criminal conduct, I guess is to tighten the legal noose around illegal acts. Libel is a crime in our statute book, yes. But people get away with it because they know that in our judicial system, justice is often delayed and thereby denied. The judicial system should be reworked and made to deliver justice promptly and without delay. If you know that in the event that you commit a libel, you could be in jail in less than a month after the crime, you will have a second thought before setting out to do the crime.

    Also the Nigerian Press Council (NPO), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), will need to look at how they can quickly rescue this lofty profession from the hands of quacks, blackmailers and marauders before they drive us into collective infamy.New code of conduct to accommodate the peculiar modus operandi of the online publications may be desirable now.

    These professional bodies may also want to consider an enlightenment campaign targeted at members of the profession in all genres of journalism. Such campaign will extol the virtues of conforming with journalism ethics and will rail against unprofessional conduct.

    Moral persuasion through seminars, workshops and conferences could also help in the campaign to bring sanity back to the profession.

    Indeed the task of rescuing this noble profession from the clutches of the practitioners of journalism sans conscience; from blackmailers and gangsters parading themselves as professionals is one for all men of conscience, in and out of the media industry. It is what we owe this worthy profession.

     

    • Adedoyin, journalist, writer and corporate communications practitioner wrote in from Ikeja, Lagos.
  • Ambode asks NUJ to change face of journalism

    Ambode asks NUJ to change face of journalism

    •Governor receives new President, Odusile

    The newly elected President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Mr. Waheed Odusile, has been charged to reposition journalism for the purpose of building a virile and strong nation.

    This, he can do, by utilis ing the strength of the social media.

    Governor Akinwunmi Ambode made the call at the weekend when Odusile led a delegation of the union on a courtesy visit to him at Alausa, Ikeja.

    “In this modern day of social media, we need to start to look at what social media means to our journalists and national development,” the governor said.

    He also advised the NUJ leadership to work assiduously to improve on the standard of the profession in Nigeria.

    His words: “We should be able to look at that area and see how we can improve on the curriculum of the Institute of Journalism and other communication schools where we can start integrating the good side of social media with journalism and development in the best interest of the nation.”

    He said no political leadership can thrive without the support of journalists as its role in the polity could not be over emphasized.

    He congratulated the Lagos State council of the union for producing the NUJ president for the first time in 21 years.

    Odusile said the union would partner with the government in the effort to rebuild Nigeria.

    He appealed for the governor’s assistance in weeding out quacks from the profession. According to him, “We need laws to flush out quackery from our profession; we need your support to make a law to make quackery a thing of the past in our profession. We want to focus on professionalism.”

  • What you should know about impact Journalism

    What you should know about impact Journalism

    “Local spark, global impact! 45 newspapers share solutions to world problems. Join the movement: #ImpactJournalism”

  • I will restore glory of journalism, says Odusile

    I will restore glory of journalism, says Odusile

    Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), presidential aspirant, Waheed Odusile, had pledged to restore the glory of journalism, if elected.

    Odusile, who addressed journalists at the Ernest Etim Bassey Press Centre in Calabar, Cross River State yesterday, in his ongoing nationwide campaign said: “if given the opportunity, you will not be disappointed.”

    He assured practicing journalists in government and private employment of a special media salary structure.

    He said that journalists have been at the forefront of promoting democracy in the country and deserve better salary structure to complement their efforts.

    “If you vote me into the office of the national president of NUJ, I can guarantee you of good salary structure.

    “We are going to engage the government of the day in dialogue to make them see reasons why we need good pay for our members.

    “This we can achieve if you give me your support to be your president,” he said.

    He also promised to fight quackery in the media profession and ensure that all practicing journalists meet the necessary requirements.

     

  • Let journalism thrive

    Having a cordial relationship with the media is a must for any government, organisation or individual who occupies a public or private office.

    The popular definition of public relations by Frank Jenkins aptly captures what is required – the relationship must be deliberate, planned and sustained.

    You don’t have to like journalists or what they publish and broadcast, but you must learn to savour good reports about you, when you are reported the way you want, and tolerate what you consider occasional excesses.

    I dare say that the media can sometimes be a necessary “evil” that has to be understood for the important role it plays in informing, eduating and entertaining the public.

    The recent controversy over the ban on the African Independent Television (AIT) which has been resolved is an example of the need for restraint in reacting to perceived negative reporting by the media.

    Whoever gave the instruction that AIT should  “step aside” from the coverage of the official assignments of the President- elect to resolve “ethical and security issues” concerning the organisation, without clearance from Gen. Mohammadu Buhari committed a major blunder.

    It was a needless controversy which even before being sworn in has given the wrong impression that the new administration may not be tolerant of criticisms.

    AIT’s broadcast of the infamous hate documentary titled: The Real Buhari, is particularly reprehensible and could be enough justification to be wary of the organisation, but not to ask its staff to stay away from the public functions of the President-elect.

    Indeed, AIT was not the only organisation that was guilty of ethical breaches in the coverage of the just concluded elections.

    Virtually every print and broadcast organisations in the country violated the code of conduct for election coverage and advertisement for political, ownership, commercial and other reasons.

    Apart from AIT and Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) that aired the controversial documentary, the Nigeria Broadcasting Commission indicted several other government and private stations.

    According to the NBC, “the contraventions include breaches of the rules on the broadcast of sponsored electoral campaign materials, which must conform to the standards of truth, decency and good taste, and requiring the sponsor to be clearly identified.”

    Some of the adverts published in some newspapers couldn’t have been approved for publications if they had been screened by the Advertising Standard panel.

    My verdict on the election coverage is to quote the bible verse that all have sinned and come short of the ethics of the profession on this matter.

    I am not sure what the penalty for the NBC indictment is, but it has to be really punitive enough to prevent reckless violations in future. Aggrieved persons have to be sure that broadcast stations will not easily get away with defamatory and false broadcasts as it seems in the present situation.

    As much as the media should be free to continue to enjoy the freedom to publish and broadcast without any government restriction, they should do so within the limits of the law and ethical demands of the profession.

    If journalism is to continue to thrive in accordance with the theme of the World Press Freedom Day marked today, (Let Journalism Thrive) there will be need for better reporting based on the principles of truth, fairness, objectivity and respects for the rights of those being reported.

  • Journalism and democratic values

    SIR: Journalism is one profession that entails gathering, processing, interpreting and investigating news and information dissemination to widely disperse audience. The media is regarded as the fourth estate of the realm of any society because of its watchdog role. Journalists serve as intermediary between the government and the people. In the on-going elections, one expects journalists to be transparent and fair in their dealings with politicians, in the overall interest of the nation. Mr. Garba Mohammed, president of Nigerian Union of Journalist (NUJ), must encourage members and media platforms to adhere to the principle of balanced reportage because the way the media portrays the world is the way the people sees it.

    The media should give fair hearing to parties and also endeavour to always sensitise the people so as to avoid being used as a tool for violence. Journalism ethic implies that, its practitioners, should at all time, say nothing but the truth in order to gain societal trust. The on-going elections should not create a difference because it is the only thing that can give the people opportunity to speak out as regards the true state of their country. The media must avoid being used as underwriters but they must be seen as genuine watchdog to government and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Although, a free and fair election is always considered to be the task of INEC but let it be known that the media is also responsible for, not only a free and fair election, but for peaceful elections. The media has been working and one is proud to commend their efforts for reporting with utmost professionalism. But the media in general can still fare better with great caution and forthrightness. The media can better help in achieving a free and fair election, peaceful society and better nation through its well researched and balanced reportage.

     

    • Salau Olawale Rilwan,

    Kwara State University.

  • Journalism lecturer slumps, dies

    Journalism lecturer slumps, dies

    Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ) was, on Friday, thrown into mourning, following the death of a lecturer.

    Mr Christian Ogochukwu Ogbodo was said to have slumped on Thursday evening but died the following day.

    CAMPUSLIFE could not confirm the cause of the death but a family member, who did not want her name in print, said Mr Chris, as the deceased was fondly called by students, died of high blood pressure.

    The school campus in Ogba, Lagos was gloomy when the news hit the deceased’s colleagues. Staff and students gathered in group, discussing in hush tones. Some students, who described the late Ogbodo as their best lecturer, expressed shock.

    A student, Ayodele Bandele, described the late lecturer as nice and friendly, saying: “We will miss Mr Chris.”

    Sandra Nwokocha, a HND II student, said: “I saw him in the radio studio about two weeks ago. I did not know it would be the last time I would see him. This is shocking.”

    Another student, who simply gave his name as Charles, said it was painful to learn the death of his mentor. “Mr Chris’ death is a devastating blow to the Institute,” he said.

    A lecturer, Ifedayo Akinwalere, said he felt sad when the news hit him. “I felt sad when I heard the bad news this morning. I am still looking for words to describe what happened. The late Ogbodo was such a young and promising teacher. He was jovial and likable. I pray God gives the family the fortitude to bear the loss,” he said.

    The late Ogbodo was full-time Broadcast lecturer. He joined NIJ in 2010.

  • Anueyiagu, unsung icon of journalism

    SIR: As political hawks hover about and around in their bid to grab power to, perhaps, enable them as usual, to loot the nation’s wealth rather than serve the interest of the people, anyone who grew up during the struggle for independence is bound to lament over what has been happening in the country for a long time now.

    In particular, such a person is bound to be deeply touched by the news of the death of Chief Chukwuma Anueyiagu, a unique nationalist, who contributed selflessly and immensely to the struggle for Nigeria’s independence.

    I remember the late Anueyiagu as the editor of The Nigerian Spokesman, one of Zik Group of Newspapers then published at Onitsha with the motto: That Man Shall Not Be a Wolf to Man. I still remember vividly his advertisement for news that read: If a Dog Bites a Man, It Is No News, But If A Man Bites A Dog, Then It Is News. If Anything Newsworthy Happens In Your Community, Take Up Your Pen And Write To The Nigerian Spokesman.

    I also remember that he preached the five planks of ZIKISM on the pages of the newspaper to wit – (1)Spiritual Balance, by which is meant  respect for the opinion of others; (2) Social Regeneration,  which meant the jettisoning of all forms of prejudice, be they racial, national, tribal, societal, religious, political, economic or ethical; the realisation that an African is an African no matter where he was born; (3) Economic Determinism, which taught the realisation that economic self-sufficiency on a sane basis is the ultimate means to the salvation of the Renascent African; (4) Mental Emancipation, which states that the African must develop mentally as he is not intellectually inferior to other races, for mental slavery is worse than physical slavery; (5) National Risorgimento which assured that if the Renascent African cultivated spiritual balance, experienced social regeneration, realized economic determinism, and created a condition whereby he is mentally emancipated to appreciate his manifest destiny in the world, then he would expect national risorgimento.

    Anueyiagu was one of the most erudite of such editors that carried out his own campaign with such zeal that beggared description. So efficient was he that served as editor of virtually all newspapers in the Zik Group. He served for six clear years as Editor-in-Chief of the West African Pilot, the premier and most important newspaper of the group.

    Anueyiagu’s editorials were so fiery that the British authorities in Nigeria saw them as seditious and sent him to prison several times. A man of principle, who always had the courage of his conviction, he could not be

    intimidated by the British imperialist.

    One had expected that after independence the government of Nigeria would have recognized and honoured Chief Chukwuma Anueyiagu and others who performed as political foot soldiers during the struggle for independence (Mokwugo Okoye, Raji Abdalah, Osita Agwuna to mention only a few). But those in power after independence preferred to honour such persons as were described by nationalists during colonial times as Uncle Toms, political lackeys and fifth columnists.

    However, God honoured him with longevity as Anueyiagu died at the age of 100 years in a country where life expectancy is below 50 years.

    As Nigerians continue to develop the penchant for forgetting the people of yesterday, they spend so much time and expend so much energy singing the praise of the people of today, even when they are unworthy of such praises. In the process, they build monuments to perpetuate the memory of those who have left no memory.

    But the men of today must realise that they themselves would become the men of yesterday only tomorrow and that tomorrow is very much in sight. They would be wise to stop polishing pebbles and darkening diamonds, start giving honour to whom it is due and to learn that, “When the high heart we magnify, and the sure vision celebrate and worship greatness passing by, ourselves are great.”

     

    • Emmanuel Orji,

     Awka, Anambra State