2021: Sani Uba, Rauf Aregbesola and the NUJ honorary award

The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) awards Senator Uba Sani ‘Outstanding Senator’ in the 9th National Assembly. As reported by Vanguard, NUJ also described the lawmaker as the most “media-friendly” in the Northwest.

This award seems to be legitimate and generally accepted by the NUJ zonal and national council unlike Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola's own that caused controversy.

Recall that the union at its zonal meeting of 12th March 2021, had agreed to put the proposed Investiture on hold following the leadership crisis in the zone which has been referred to the National Executive Council of the Union.

According to the information obtained by our correspondent, those who were to be honoured alongside Aregbesola includes Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, Olowu of Kuta, Oba Adekunle Makama among others but the union agreed to postpone the award ceremony pending the resolution of NEC on the issue and other sundry issues within the zone.

But against this decision, a flyer suddenly surfaced on social media, purportedly endorsed by Bamigbola Gbolagunte, who claimed to be Acting Vice-president and later Zonal Secretary of the zone, saying the event has been slated for 25th March 2021, at NUJ Press Centre, Iyaganku, the capital of Oyo State.

While, the six states that constitute the zonal wing of the union in the South West have unanimously distanced themselves from such event.

It was learnt that the six state chairmen have resolved not to attend the award and recognize the Investiture if the Vice President and the Zonal Secretary insisted to proceed with the awards.

This was contained in a press statement signed by the National Coordinator of the organization, Comrade Tolu Fatukasi, the copy which was made available to newsmen in Ibadan.

According to the group, the investiture of an individual as the Grand Patron of a noble union like NUJ should be predicated on established media friendliness and consistent solidarity to the union by such person.

The statement read in part”, While the position of a Grand Patron of any layer of the union is acceptable and within the ambit of the union’s constitution, the mode of selection of whoever wants to take the position should be moderate and decent.

“We are indeed taken aback at the mention of the minister name for the proposed investiture as the Grand Patron of NUJ in the South West.

“As a Media Rights group, we have the details of his relationship with the media throughout his two-term tenure in office as governor in Osun State.

“He was the first governor in Nigeria’s fourth republic to have publicly declared journalists as personal non grata and enemies of the state.

“This is the man who established a local newspaper called “Osun Defender” to covertly project his political interest and upon realising his ambition, he threw journalists working in the firm out with disdain.

“By all standards, it is obvious such a personality does not fit into the category of individuals with credentials for Grand Patron of the NUJ in any cluster whatsoever”.

“You can imagine the desperation of the Minister and his handlers when they realised that the consensus of the leadership of the union in the South West was to cancel the event, they now wanted to organise a kangaroo investiture somewhere else in connivance with two dissidents parading themselves as leaders of the union in the zone”.

It has clearly shown that it was not legitimately endorsed by the NUJ national and zonal council. But, why the Chairmen of NUJ chapters in the south west weren't present in the program and their counterpart from Northwest, National President, Comrade Chris Isiguzo, National Secretary, Shuaibu Usman Leman had thrown heavy support behind a Politician and Nigerian senator in their chapter?

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