Nigerian columnists have come together under the aegis of the League of Nigerian Columnists to help reshape the country 

By Benprince Ezeh

MEMBERS of the pen fraternity and Nigerian columnists on Thursday, September 27, launched the League of Nigerian Columnists, LNC, in Lagos. Tola Adeniyi, president the LNC, said that the Nigerian columnists would be coming together to carve a respectable identity for themselves and jealously protect that identity to ward off quacks and pretenders in the Nigerian media industry.

Speaking at the inauguration of the LNC, in Lagos on Thursday, Adeniyi described columnists as the “rare breed whether as creative artist, visionary, analyst, essayist, historian, preacher, ideologue, propagandist or agitator the man or woman who can originate and compose thought of their reader almost in a compelling manner should be singled out for celebration and adoration.”

He argued: “No other branch of journalism interrogates the mind as columnist. And no other professional calling wields as much influence as the columnist does. It is our strongly held view that the Nigerian columnists that have made their mark must come together.”

He recalled that Nigerian columnists had always been powerful and influential. He said even before independence, Nigerian columnists had always been a thorn in the flesh of colonialists in Nigeria and West Africa. According to the veteran columnist, it was because of the array of columnists assembled by the late Babatunde Jose of the old Daily times in the 60s and 70s, that prompted General Yakubu Gowon, the then head of state, to make it a duty to call Jose on daily basis. He recalled names of some the late and living columnists such as the late Bisi Onabanjo, Alade Odunewu and Haroun Adamu as well as those still living such as Lateef Jakande, Sam Amuka, Areoye Oyebola and Bunmi Sofola, among others.

In any case, he examined the role of columnists, saying: “I will reinforce the view held of columnists by a brief opinion titled ‘The Columnist: A Newspaper’s Greatest Asset’  published by Freelance Writing a United States based writers’ hub. And I quote:

“Throughout the world people show tremendous loyalty to newspaper columnists and find they identify with them rather than the newspaper itself. They turn the pages of their favorite read to see their take on things. A columnist’s opinion tends to reflect readers’ mood; they are often controversial or at least enlightening. This empathy with the readership transfers intense loyalty to the newspaper they write for.

“The title is apt for, like Saint Simeon Stylizes of Syria, who in the 5^th Century harangued the populace from this column, newspaper columnists also wield enormous power.”

Commending the formation of the association, Ijeoma Nwogwugwu, MD Arise News Channel, said in an interview that the initiate of the LNC is great. “It’s a good initiative; it will give us an opportunity and also a platform to circulate our columnists, for prosperity which a lot of young ones coming behind us can learn from.

“Such leagues or such associations are not unusual; we have a senior one in the United States of America. This is actually modeled like the one in America and it gives freedom, like they said, its non-partisan and we would be able to take a stand in some certain issues to make sure there is good governance in the country. Because as you know columnists in any part of the world can be very influential, they can move markets, they can influence decisions they can bring governments down and can also get people sacked. So by coming together under one roof gives us stronger voice.”

According to Nwogwugwu a columnist is different from an activist. “A columnist is a writer plan and simple and an activist is not necessarily a writer, an activists expresses his or her opinion and what his passionate about. But sometimes some columnists are activists; they use their columns for activism,” she said.

Prominent among columnists who graced the occasion are Dan Agbese, Ray Ekpu, Yakubu Mohammed and Soji Akinrinade, all of Newswatch magazine; Reuben Abati, formerly The Guardian newspaper; Dare Babarinsa of Tell magazine; Martins Oloja of the Guardian; Henry Boyo, a business columnist;Ikechkwu Amaechi, among others.

– Sept. 28, 2018 @ 14:15 GMT |