By Juliana Francis
The Executive Director of the International Press Centre (IPC), Lanre Arogundade, has called on the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to stop conferring awards on serving public officials, arguing that the practice compromises the union’s ability to hold power to account.
Arogundade made the call on Monday while speaking as a panellist at the public launch of the 2025 Journalism and Civic Space Status Report, titled “Silenced Voices, Shrinking Space: Civic Under Pressure,” presented by the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) in Lagos.
The report launch doubled as the 18th Wole Soyinka Annual Media Lecture, held in honour of Professor Wole Soyinka’s birthday, under the theme “Beyond the Ballot: Measuring Democracy Through Security, Welfare, Accountability, and Public Trust,” at The Providence, Ikeja.
Responding to a question on why the NUJ appears reluctant to fight for justice on behalf of journalists who are attacked, Arogundade suggested that the union’s closeness to high-ranking officials undermines its advocacy role.
“NUJ should just stop giving awards to public office holders or wait until they leave office,” he said. “It is even more absurd that a governor who shut down a media organisation was given an award.”
Arogundade also spoke about the rising hostility faced by journalists, particularly during election coverage.
“Some of these attacks occur mostly when journalists are covering elections, and party agents mostly attack them. There’s now greater intolerance on the part of some people against journalists,” he said.
He lamented a shift in public attitude toward tough journalism. “In school, journalists were told to ask tough questions, yet these days, when they ask tough questions, they are termed as being rude. The truth is that we need the support of the Public for journalism to thrive in Nigeria.”
Describing journalism as “an endangered profession,” Arogundade noted that many journalists now work under surveillance and face growing digital threats. Still, he urged practitioners not to be discouraged.
“We must acknowledge the truth that journalism offers hope to this generation and also accept that the more we do our work well, the more the attacks will come; we should not be deterred,” he said.
Turning to undergraduates in the audience, he encouraged them to take ownership of their beats.
“Don’t be scared about being poor. You can live well by knowing, covering, and reporting your beat very well. You are actually rich in knowing your beat and writing books.”
Ahead of the report’s public presentation, Lekan Otufodunrin, Executive Director of the Media Career Development Network, reviewed its key findings.
The report, based on media monitoring conducted between January and December 2025, tracked trends and incidents affecting journalism, civic space and democratic accountability in Nigeria.
It documented 245 civic space incidents drawn from 570 media reports published by 54 media organisations, pointing to sustained pressure on freedom of expression, access to information, peaceful assembly, association and broader civic participation.
Following the report review, a stakeholder dialogue on the state of journalism, civic space, democratic accountability, and public trust was moderated by Ayo Mairo-Ese, anchor at Arise News.
Panellists included Professor Umaru Pate; Lanre Arogundade; Bernard Akede, Head of Reportorial and International Correspondent at News Central TV; Mariam Alo, Programme Officer at WSCIJ; and Khadijah El-Usman, Senior Programmes Officer for Anglophone West Africa at Paradigm Initiative.
The panel examined the report’s findings and discussed practical pathways for strengthening media freedom, civic participation and institutional accountability.
The event also featured a farewell fireside chat between Motunrayo Alaka, Executive Director/CEO of WSCIJ, and Michel Deelen, Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Lagos, who is concluding his diplomatic assignment in Nigeria.
Their conversation touched on Nigeria’s 27-year democratic journey, the value of sustained international partnerships in strengthening investigative journalism and democratic accountability, and the Netherlands’ longstanding support for WSCIJ.
In recognition of his support for the organisation and his contribution to investigative journalism in Nigeria, Deelen was presented with an award of appreciation by WSCIJ.
The Report Launch and Lecture series concluded with the cutting of a birthday cake in celebration of the 92nd birthday of Professor Wole Soyinka, Nobel Laureate and Grand Patron of WSCIJ, closing out the day’s events on a celebratory note in honour of his lifelong commitment to truth, justice, democracy, and public-interest journalism.
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