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Governor, Appeal Court President, others receive NUJ prestigious awards
From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti
Ahead of the 2026 governorship election in Ekiti State, Governor Biodun Oyebanji has charged media practitioners in the state to live up to their expectation as the fourth estate of the realm by ensuring fair and unbiased reportage of electoral activities.
While commending journalists for being partners in progress with the state government, he urged them to discharge their duties with utmost professionalism and be fair to all politicians irrespective of their party affiliations, so that political parties and the electorate can operate without violence.
The governor gave the charge on Wednesday in Ado-Ekiti, capital of the state, shortly after he was honoured with an Award of Excellence by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ekiti State Council, during its 2025 Press Week Dinner and Award Night.
Receiving the award on behalf of the Governor, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Yinka Oyebode, appreciated the Union and described the award as well-deserving.
The governor’s aide reiterated that his principal will look into the demands of the Union, which he hinted fall on the priority list of the governor.
The President of the Customary Court of Appeal, Ekiti State, Justice Monisade Abodunde, and Vice-Chancellor of Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado-Ekiti, Prof. Joseph Ayodele, were also among the awardees.
Former House of Representatives Member, Hon. Bimbo Daramola, and Managing Director of Delko Holding Ltd, Olufemi Aluko, were also honoured at the event.
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Earlier in his lecture titled “Ekiti yesterday, today and tomorrow,” Daramola urged journalists to challenge politicians and make them accountable for their actions. According to him, doing this would prompt the actors and the society to respect the profession.
He also commended the integral role of the Catholic Church under the auspices of the Justice Development and Peace Initiative (JDPI) for collaborating with the Ekiti NUJ Council in promoting good governance and accountability, as well as regularly engaging lawmakers with citizens.
“Society cannot be built by politicians alone; every politician is also a member of society. If the politicians appointed to positions are not doing their job, the people who elected them should be able to stand up and challenge them.
“I heard that an NGO affiliated with the Catholic Church has partnered with NUJ to be monitoring projects of politicians across the state; that is very commendable.
“So, partnership with a vibrant Union like NUJ, you begin to inspect the projects of legislators, you ask them questions about constituency projects. What happened to this money? What happened to that money? If we are not doing that, politicians will forever take you for granted and the consequences of bad people in power will affect the profession.”
There was also the presentation of awards to journalists who have performed excellently well in the course of their profession.
