THISDAY Journalist, Others Win Wole Soyinka Award

THISDAY journalist, Omolabake Fasogbon has been recognised for her outstanding and courageous reporting at the 16th Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Reporting.

Fasogbon was honoured for her investigative piece, ‘Death, sleaze as Lagos N576m highway machine Lie Fallow’

The report revealed how a sum of N576million was released for machine sweepers to sweep major highways in Lagos state in order to prevent major road tragedy for sweepers, pedestrians as well drivers.

To the shock of many, machines were never deployed to sweep highways, while lives of sweepers and many others continued to waste away on the dangerous roads.

The report also divulged the corruption in the award of the machine contract to both existing and pseudo contractors, with parties privy to the contract denying involvement.

The report emerged the second position in the print category while the Nation journalist,Olukunle Akinrinade came first with his entry: ‘Soldiers escort herdsmen to Ogun communities, flog residents for rejecting.

Tessy Igomu of Punch Newspapers was commended for her for her two-part story titled, ‘Imo’s regime of bloodshed, mindless killings by troops leaves parents, widows, children in agony’.

Fasogbon has attended several trainings and has won several nominations both locally and internationally. In 2020 , she was nominated for the Cancer Journalism Award by the European School for Oncology in Milan, Italy. She has a special flair for reporting women’s health , human rights abuse and corruption in high places.

She is a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Project under the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.

Similarly, veteran cartoonist and painter, Josy Ajiboye was decorated with the Lifetime Award for Journalistic Excellence while CLEEN Foundation, represented by Blessing Abiri, Head, Lagos office of the organisation, was presented the 2021 Human Rights Defender Award in recognition of its dedication to police reform and human rights defence in Nigeria.

Held first in October 2005, the Wole Soyinka award has produced 109 finalists, 56 Soyinka Laureates, 12 investigative journalists of the year and 26 honorary awards recipients for the Lifetime Award for Journalistic Excellence and the Anti-Corruption/Human Rights Defender Awards.

Winners, runners-up and commended works in this edition of the award were presented cash prizes of N200,000, N100,000 and N50,000 respectively, plus a certificate of commendation. In addition, winners got award plaques and a laptop; runners-up got a smart phone; and commended works got a hard drive.