Soyinka Centre Commends Story on Aregbesola’s ‘Opon Imo Scam’ at Award Ceremony

Segun Atanda/

The governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola briefly took center-stage at the NECA House in Ikeja, Lagos, on Saturday, as the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) displayed a story that got special commendation in the Online Category at the 12th edition of its annual award ceremony.

The story entitled: “Aregbesola and the Scam Called Opon-Imo” was written by Ebere Ndukwu for Ripples Nigeria online newspaper.

Judges described the story as exceptional and Ndukwu received a Prize presented by human rights lawyer, Jiti Ogunye.

Here is the story as published by Ripples Nigeria:

Meanwhile, second-time winner, Adekunle Yusuf of The Nation Newspaper emerged as the Investigative Journalist of the year, just as Dr Obiageli Ezekwesili, a former Minister of Education, and Edetaen Ojo, the Executive Director, Media Rights Agenda, as well as nine other outstanding journalists were honored.

The event had in attendance several dignitaries including Wole Soyinka, Africa’s first Nobel Laureate in Literature and grand patron of the centre; Femi Falana, lawyer and human rights activist; Michel Deelen, Deputy Ambassador to the Kingdom of Netherlands; Abdulazeez Musa, Head, Influencing and Public Engagement, Oxfam in Nigeria; and Nneka Ijeoma, Manager Policy Government and Public Affairs, Chevron Nigeria, among others.

Held first in October 2005, to develop investigative tradition among journalists, the Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Reporting has produced 83 finalists, 41 Soyinka laureates, 28 runner-ups, 16 commended works and 18 honorary awards so far. The 2017 edition opened with a speech from Ropo Sekoni, Board Chair WSCIJ, who emphasized, among other things, that the unfortunate return of slave trade, evidenced by the recent occurrence in Libya, requires thorough investigation of the Nigerian side of the faces behind human trafficking. Africa cannot afford a third slave trade, he said.

Yusuf’s emerged the winner of the print category and the award for his story – Exposed: How corruption, favoritism thrive in UNILORIN, was published in The Nation. Yusuf won the award in 2015.

According to the judges, his story is an uncovering of over four years of hidden corruption cases in the University of Ilorin.

The piece, Nyanya Blasts: Victims’ Agonies Live On, gave Mojeed Alabi of New Telegraph the runner-up prize, while Chinwe Agbeze of BusinessDay was commended for her story, Cheese Balls Company Where Slavery Goes On.

Soyombo Olufisayo, a third time winner of the award, with a story published on The Cable, Undercover: In Borno, Children are Dying at IDP Camps, Foodstuffs are ‘Disappearing’ at SEMA Store, won the online category. Premium Times’ Kemi Busari emerged the runner-up with the piece, Investigation: Corruption, Extortion Reign at Nigeria Immigration Passport Office.

For the photo category, Ayodele Ojo, a 2016 runner-up, won with his photo, ‘Law of jackboot’ published in Daily Sun Newspaper.

‘VIO Being Molested by Hoodlums for Trying to Arrest a Traffic Offender’, a picture published in Leadership Newspaper made Kolawole Aliu the runner-up. Ayodele Adeniran of The Guardian Newspaper was commended for his entry, ‘Tragedy as Another Three-Storey Building Collapses in Lagos.

Local Rice: ‘The Bittersweet Side of an Economy Driven by Women’ by Ujorha Tadaferua of Daily Trust Newspaper won the newly introduced Special prize for Agriculture and Food Security. Abdulazeez Musa, of Oxfam Nigeria, explained that the partnership with the WSCIJ would help journalists highlight the real issues affecting agriculture and food security in Nigeria.

The winners got cash prizes of N200, 000, award plaque, two terabyte hard drives, certificate of commendation and they will proceed on an international study tour in 2018.

Editorial cartoon, television and radio categories failed to produce winners.

For the honorary awards, Edetaen Ojo, received the Lifetime Award for Journalistic Excellence for his leadership of issues that enshrine freedom of expression, including his significant contribution towards the passage and implementation of the Freedom of Information Act in Nigeria. He is the eleventh recipient of the award.

Dr Obiageli Ezekwesili received the Anti-Corruption Defender Award. Fondly referred to as ‘Madam Due Process’, Ezekwesili is the ninth recipient of the award. Accepting the award, she said journalists were in a noble profession explicitly enshrined in the constitution. She enjoined everyone to assume the office of the citizen and hold government accountable so that officers in elective positions would have no excuse but perform.

In his remark, Wole Soyinka congratulated the winners. He said that the Nigerian media was considered one of the foremost and most interesting all over the world. While also applauding the award recipients, Lai Oso, the Chair, 2017 Judges Board, observed that going by the entries, much needs be done in the continuous education of journalists. He affirmed that mere feature stories are not necessarily synonymous with investigative stories.

In her statement on the brutality of citizens by state security agents in commemoration of the world anti-corruption and human right days, Motunrayo Alaka, the Coordinator of the WSCIJ, noted that the centre has since inception supported investigations on the brutality of armed security agents on Nigerians. She reeled out investigative stories ranging from extra-judicial killings, to torture of Nigerians, done by some of the centre’s Soyinka Laureates. She then called on the government to put an end to the ‘rain of terror’ on citizens by those with the constitutional mandate of protecting them.

Footprints of David charged the atmosphere with a dance drama. The performance was a satire on the men in uniform, who jump queues in filling stations, drive against traffic, and unacceptably trample on the rights of the citizens who dare raise the eyebrow on their brutality. The group pleaded that the journalists use their pen to help Nigerians regain their freedom, affirming that the pen is mightier than the sword.

 

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