I have received the news of the lifting of a one-year suspension supposedly imposed on me by the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) with a chuckle. This is because it was a nullity ab initio.
In fact, one would have dismissed it entirely as a non-issue but for the need to correct certain misrepresentations now freely available in the world wide web’s digital memory.
A search of my name today would reveal that I was suspended by the NGE for “professional misconduct”.
This, of course, is a gross misrepresentation. What happened was a simple matter of professional disagreement or disputation. There was a disagreement on an issue pertaining to a Non Disclosure Agreement (NDA). This can, in no way, be equated to a “professional misconduct”.
This distorted impression needs to be put into proper context.
Lifting of 1-year suspension
While one acknowledges the lifting of the so-called suspension, another reason for this piece is to urge that we all learn the lessons arising from this teachable moment.
Having enjoyed the benefit of a year-long reflection on the matter, it is very important to review the issues at stake and imbibe the lessons therefrom, viz:
a) The NGE needs to hold its conferences and conventions sacrosanct and endeavour not deviate from their core objectives.
For instance, the keynote address during the biannual convention was an opportunity to interrogate a serious national issue and make policy statements therefrom. It was therefore incumbent upon us to ensure robust conversations and a wide coverage of the outing.
Conferences and conventions are opportunities to project the Guild and not for briefing of editors by a speaker.
The sudden conversion of the most important item of our last convention into an off-the-record security briefing is a mistake that must never recur in the annals of the Guild again.
No speaker should have the power or authority to degrade our calendar function.
It was a most demeaning moment for the over 400 editors seated including veterans and octogenarians.
Most memorable was the hurried shooing out of our reporters and photographers; the weird cinematography of this scene has lodged in one’s mind like a stray bullet, ever since.
Some of these reporters and photojournalists are our senior people who have been with us for a couple of decades. They should never be treated like vermin in a Guild event.
b) Off the record briefings are usually sensitive information or high security briefings that require discreet timings and indeed, venues.
You don’t impose a non-disclosure agreement on a hall of about a thousand people!
c) The Guild acceding to making its keynote address off-the-records is like shooting oneself in the foot. It does deep damage not only to the Guild, but to our noble profession.
For instance, the convention in question was less than two weeks after the Yelwata massacre in Benue State in which over 200 compatriots were slaughtered in one night by terrorists. It was clearly a matter of failure of intelligence.
The Director-General of the State Security Services should be giving the audience some concrete explanation of what went wrong in Yelewata.
Not even in the Russia-Ukraine war has such a high number of fatalities been recorded in one night!
Yet no questions asked. No resolution to Yelwata. Scores of innocence citizens are still being slaughtered in Benue State till date.
Yet we were muzzled from holding nary an opinion on the address.
We, editors, are at the top of the pyramid of those keeping the gate therefore, we must never lose our guard.
But we are already dozing off on duty, which explains why brigands assail the land already.
Official corruption in Nigeria today is worse than COVID 19. The level of corruption today requires that Nigeria should be shut down and cleansed. But we have helped a great deal to normalise this malady. We look the other way.
Nay, we actually honour our rogues with spurious awards they don’t merit.
d) Finally, off-the-records matters, security briefings and non-disclosure pacts remain discretionary. They are at best, a gentleman’s agreement.
Applying the rules depends largely on the journalist and his orientation.
Of course, NDA should never provide a shade for public officials to hide their incompetence or malfeasance. NDA should further noble causes and protect the society.
An aspect of non-disclosure helped Washington Post reporters produce a series of stories that helped to kick out a devious president, Richard Nixon in 1974 in the Watergate scandal.
Here at home, in May 2004, yours truly was among the editors invited by President Olusegun Obasanjo for a security briefing before he declared a state of emergency in Plateau State. Despite the prior briefing, not all the editors supported Obasanjo’s emergency move. Many of us wrote editorials and opinion articles condemning the action.
In conclusion, one hopes this professional altercation would help us to nurture a better Guild and improve our profession. While one has also learned a lot from the episode, the intervention and counsel of people like Emma Agu, Comfort Obi, Ogbuagu Anikwe, Chief Ikechi Emenike, Angela Agoawike, Abraham Ogbodo and Ojukwu Okwudili-Enendu, to name a few, are most cherished. They didn’t only calm the storm, they brought rich professional insights to bear on the matter.
I hereby reaffirm my utmost regard for members and leadership of the Guild. It is hoped that this professional exchange would serve as currency for a better Guild.
