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| WSCIJ Executive Director, Mr. Dapo Olorunyomi recounting the Centre's mission and experience from inception |
WOLE SOYINKA CENTRE MARKS WORLD ANTI-CORRUPTION DAY,
HONOURS SEVENTEEN JOURNALISTS
Continuing
its tradition of honouring works that reflect best standards in investigative
journalism on the World Anti-Corruption Day – December 9 – the Wole Soyinka
Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) celebrated 17 journalists on Sunday
in Abeokuta. Seun Akioye of The Compass newspaper won the print category
with his story Behold!
Village where kids are born to be house helps while Theophilus Abbah of
Daily Trust was the runner-up with his piece, Behind the Controversial N2
Trillion Subsidy.
In the
Online category, Idris Akinbajo, the Investigations Editor at Premium Times
won the prize with his 3-part serial, The Massive MGD Fraud, while Ini Ekott,
political editor of the same media is the runner-up with his 6-part story, How
public officials squander public funds on lavish lifestyles
Adeparusi
Oluyinka of National Mirror Newspaper was adjudged runner up with his
touching picture captioned – Ojora House Arrest, which the judges’ board
praised for what they said was “a particularly steering moment in the use of
the camera to advocate for compassion,”; while Olatunji Obasa, a
photojournalist with The Punch Newspaper, and two-time runner up for
this prize was adjudged winner for his picture titled – Police Brutality.
The judges’ panel gave kudos to his “staying power, and his convincing sense of
craft that the camera is a tenable tool of policy change for a humane world.”
Bassey
Asuqwo of Business Day newspaper won the prize in the Editorial
Cartooning category with his work – Debts’ Blue Sea – of which the
judges’ board noted, “brought a critical note to the relevance of art in the
service of good governance.” Albert Ohams of the Sun Newspaper who was runner
up with the entry, The N5,000 Note, also drew high commendation from the
Judges’ who said “he laced the challenge of social engineering with an
appropriate measure of humour.”
Lucas
Olumuyiwa, a senior editor at Tell Magazine, swayed the judges’ board
with the depth of his report, N2.5 Billion Scam Freezes Abuja Hospital
Project, to claim the prize in Local Government reporting category. Anthony
Akaeze of Newswatch magazine was runner up for his story that drew
attention to the “Executive Robbery” in many of the Local Government
administrations in the country.
In the
Health Reporting Category, the judges’ board elected Ms. Adesola Ayo-Aderele,
an Assistant Editor at the Punch Newspaper as runner up, and said of her
story titled OOUTH: An Old Teething Hospital “that this is the very
stuff that defines the worth of true journalism in reporting, and in
writing.”
Ms.
Tobore Ovuorie, of the National Mirror was the winner in the health
reporting category for her story: Travellers Shun Vaccination…As Touts Take
Over. Her work drew commendation “for its courage, its dare, and its sunny
feelings that good reporting is as much about depth as it is about the renewal
of community.”
For the
second year, Mr Idris Akinbajo was again announced the WSCIJ-Nigerian Investigative
Journalist of the year 2012 for his overall outstanding performance. The
judges’ said he brought “a sense of depth, craft, integrity, and class act, to
his reporting and writing which not only put the case for accountability in
government forcefully on the table, but also brings a lot of pride to Nigerian
journalism.”
Following
the Centre’s tradition of exemplary standards, the judges found no work
suitable for an award in the radio, television, sports, and climate change
categories.
The
judges’ board however proposed four entries for Special Commendation.
They are:
Abimbola Thomas of The
Guardian, whose narrative report, Tales from Nigerian Prisons
you’ve Never Heard
drew the attention of the judges, who saluted its “sense of value and
promise.”
Erapi Gabriel, a cartoonist with The Sun with
his work ‘The N5, 000 Note’ also drew the attention of the judges who
said he animated his work with a “chuckling sense of humour and seriousness.”
Two
reporters of Tell magazine, Arukaino Umokoro
& Ayodeji Adeyemi, were
praised for the “ringing assertiveness, and the thoughtfulness of their report,
Why Government Should Hands off Sports which is destined to capture some
attention sooner than later.”
The
last commendation was made to Seun Okinbaloye of Channels TV, for his
documentary on the Soluyi Community of which the judges say “incubated a ripe
embryo of a balance in craft and social concern.”
The
honorary award of Lifetime Award for Journalistic Excellence was presented to
broadcast historian, and music critic, Mr. Benson Idonije, while the
Anti-corruption Defender award was given to one-time governor of Kaduna State,
Mallam Balarabe Musa.
In his
closing speech, the Executive Director of the Centre, Mr. Dapo Olorunyomi,
spoke to the value of training, and the need for investigative practice in
Nigerian journalism. He called on generous segments of the Nigerian
community to support the WSCIJ in its mission to promote this tradition in
Nigerian journalism, adding that the current crisis and integrity deficit in
the nation’s political and economical landscape indicate an urgent need for a
rigorous touch of investigative reporting.
His
views were supported by the Chairman of the Judges’ Board, Professor Lai Oso,
Dean of the School of Journalism, Lagos State University, who also called on
the media industry to support initiatives of the WSCIJ which he said was set up
to promote the capacity of the industry.
Importantly,
the Centre newly introduced a coding system in the judging process as part of the
effort at heightening the integrity of the award by removing perceived tendency
for bias in the scoring process. According to Ms. Motunrayo Alaka the
Centre’s Coordinator, the introduction of the coding system is to improve the
credibility of the scoring process by limiting information on entries
dispatched to judges for assessment.
The
winners went home with award plaques, a cash prize of N100, 000, and a back-up
computer hard drive, while runner up winners got N50,000 cash prizes, computer
backup hard drives, and a certificate of commendation. A certificate of
commendation went to all the commended entries.
Guests
at the event included the Board Chair of the Centre, Professor Ropo Sekoni, the
Chairperson of the Judges’ board, Professor Lai Oso, the Ogun State
Commissioners for Health, Dr. Olaokun Soyinka, the Commissioner for Information,
Alh. Yusuph Olaniyonu, three-time commissioner in Ogun State, Deaconess Doyin
Ogunbiyi, and Mr. Benson Idonije.
Below
is list of the awards handed out at the awards ceremony:
• Lifetime
Award for Media Excellence awarded to Benson Idonijie, a leading broadcast
historian
• Balarabe
Musa got the 2012 Anti-Corruption Defender Award.
• Idris
Akinbajo of PREMIUM TIMES named Nigeria’s Best Investigative Reporter, an award
he won in 2011
• Seun
Akioye of Compass Newspapers won in the Print Category.
• Theophilus
Abbah of Daily Trust was runner-up for Print
• Idris
Akinbajo of PREMIUM TIMES won Online category award.
• Ini
Ekott of PREMIUM TIMES was runner-up in the Online category.
• Olatunji
Obasa of Punch Newspapers won in the Photojournalism category
• Asuqwo
Etim Bassey of Business Day won in the Editorial Cartooning category
• Albert
Ohams of Sun Newspapers was runner-up for editorial cartooning category
• Yinka
Adeparusi of National Mirror was runner-up in Photo journalism category
• Tobore
Ovuorie of National Mirror won the Health Category award.
• Adesola
Ayo-Akerele of Punch Newspapers won runner-up prize in the Health Category
• Lucas
Olumuyiwa Morenikeji of Tell Magazine was winner of the Local Government
Category
• Anthony
Akaeze of Newswatch Magazine was runner-up for Local Government reporting
category.
• Arukaino
Umukoro and Ayodeji Adeyemi of Tell got commendation award for Sports.
• Erapi
Gabriel of Sun Newspapers got a commendation for cartoon category.
• Seun
Okinbaloye of Channels Television commended in the TV category
• Thomas
Abimbola of Guardian Newspapers was commended in the Print category
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