- By Johnson Ebigide
It is a paradox of life that most times, those that start a project or mission may not be there to reap the benefits of their initiatives. Like Moses who led the Israelites away from slavery in Egypt, crossing the Red Sea in a miraculous mystery and meandering with them in the wilderness through favourable and lean situations for years, but could not enter “the land flowing with milk and honey”, when the land was at sight as recorded in the Bible, the professional home of the founding fathers of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) appears to be forgotten by members in the scheme of things in the union, particularly in Delta State.
The NUJ came into being on March 15, 1955 in Lagos to add voice to the strident demand for Nigerian independence from British colonisation. It is interesting to note that the man who spearheaded the creation of the NUJ was an Information Officer with the then Department of Information of the British Colonial Government in the country. He was the Late Chief Olu Oyesanya who was elected as the pioneer Secretary of the union alongside the first Chief Information Officer in the country, the Late Mobolaji Odunewu, as the first President of the union.
Reports had it that the duo and other subsequent officials of the union were Information Officers, but that with the passage of time, even up till date, their presence in the union had generated a lot of inexplicable controversy ! Information Officers are seen by their colleagues in the union as agents of Government and should not be trusted with its leadership. That is the crux of the matter !
Here in Delta State, efforts have been made to produce an Information Officer as the Chairman of the council of the union in the state to no avail. The closest reach had been the emergence of some chairmen of the council from the state owned media outfits under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Information. This has been so owing to lack of cohesion among the Information Officers so much so that unbridled self-serving considerations have continued to ruin the chances of the Information Chapel from getting the chairmanship seat and possibly stepping ahead to the zonal and national hemispheres of the union.
It is against this bleak reality that the recently organised novel press week by the Comrade Obieh led Information Chapel of the union in the state should be appreciated. Not only has the initiative rekindled the camaraderie that existed among the members of the union in the colonial days of the country, it has brought to the fore the essence of the union which is ensuring the welfare of members.
The two day press week started with a novelty football match between the chapel and that of the Delta State Broadcasting Service (DBS), Asaba Chapel, of the union at the playground of the NTA in Asaba, the state capital. At the end of regulation time, the latter narrowly beat the former with a 2-1 goal margin. The only goal came from a ferocious shot from Comrade Samuel Ugbaja. Again, that only goal is significant, coming from an advanced officer where the younger ones tried to etch their names on the scoreboard to no avail. It signifies the role of the elders in bringing consolations to unnecessary warring among the younger ones who do not understand the need for unity of purpose in archiving collective goals, just as the totality of the football match was essentially to keep the members physically fit.
Also, at the grand finale of the celebration, member received free medical checkups, just as a lecture on how to live heathy was delivered by a medical expert, all geared towards the uplifting of welfare of members of the chapel. One significant noticeable development during the press week was the pervading sudden love for one another among members of the chapel, thereby dissipating the brewing disunity that had trailed the outcome of the council election of the union in the state. The boisterous hilarity among the members at the occasion was inspiring and awesome !
Speaking at the occasion, the Commissioner for Information, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, commended the leadership of the chapel for organising the week and urged for more collaborative efforts at ensuring continued camaraderie among members of the chapel, just as the Council Chairman of the NUJ in the state, Comrade Michael Ikeogwu, and other speakers in their respective goodwill messages rejoiced with the chapel and called for unity of purpose among the members.
An elated chairman of the chapel, Comrade Kenneth Obieh, had enthused that the successful organising of the event had given him joy like someone celebrating the Christmas, adding that members of the chapel would remain indebted to Mr. Aniagwu for seeing the reason and supporting the organising of the press week.
As we welcome the new found love among members of the Delta State Information Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalist, may it bear fruit in the election of an Information Officer as the Chairman of the union for the first time since the creation of the state on August 27, 1991.
That would be a great turning point in the history of the NUJ, not only in the state, but in the country.