Ogbeni Tope Awe: From State House Correspondent to pioneering tourism reporting

Vanguard started as a Sunday newspaper. I joined as the first reporter after it was established in 1984. Frank Aigbogun came in a week after as acting news editor. Chris Okojie was with Aigbogun in the Democrat newspaper.

I was, like, for a month, the only reporter in Sunday Vanguard.

Muyiwa Adetiba was editor, Toye Akiyode was deputy editor, Chris Okojie was sports editor, Jimi Disu was business editor, Francis Komolafe was photo editor, Sola Arogundade was entertainment editor, Ikeddy Iziguzo was with Chris Okojie in Sports. 

Those are the ones I can remember as pioneer staff in the editorial department.

It was a very challenging time for us. 

Some of the people I mentioned, like Adetiba, Kayode, Disu, and I, were all former Punch employees who joined Uncle Sam when he left Punch to start Vanguard newspaper. 

You know, as a pioneer, gathering news for a Sunday paper was herculean as you needed to get exclusive stories to lead the paper, which was very challenging.

Other reporters like Richard Akinnola, Gbenga Adefaye, and Onochie Anibeze joined later. 

Journey to Dodan Barracks

Because of the rat race in the office, there was an arrangement that I did not feel comfortable with.

To ease tensions, I was saddled with the responsibility of editing news for the first edition, and Aigbogun was doing the Lagos edition as the overall boss of the news department. 

I felt I could move away from office politics, and God granted my request when I made it known to Muyiwa Adetiba and Toye Akiyode that there was an opening at Dodan Barracks for a correspondent. 

I made it known to them that it would be good for Vanguard newspaper to be present at the seat of power, so that was how I was seconded to state house. 

I was there for 10 years, where I became the doyen of the State House Press Corp. 

That was the most enterprising part of my journey.  

It was at the tail end of Muhammadu Buhari”s regime and the coming of General Ibrahim Babaginda.

It was fun reporting on General Babaginda, who was a maverick as he would not tell you what he did or wanted to do, and we were kept in the dark.

Most often, we will be at the State House till late in the night till we go to our various offices.

There was no means of communication as we have now as Vanguard had only one telephone line which all correspondents outside Lagos and those in Lagos will use and it was always jam packed with one telephone operator writing stories from reporters in long hand. 

It was a challenging period and a herculean way of reporting.

Dodan Barracks was very unpredictable , and that made the reporters have sleepless nights.

If you missed a story, you were sanctioned by your office.

You might get to Dodan Barracks, and two assignments had taken place as there was no adherence to the official schedule to say at 6 pm. Babangida will do this or at 9 a.m. he will do this tomorrow

Covering the State House was a thankless job. The most difficult time covering the State House was during the budget periods when he had to announce the budget to the nation.

Babangida will rewrite and rewrite before announcing it. There was a time he made the broadcast at 12 midnight.

I had called the news room for over two hours, and there was nobody as everyone had gone home after delaying production for me.

I had to beg one of the soldiers at the State House, (at 12 midnight) to give me a ride to Kirikiri canal.  It was Pa Tommy Anaduaka, who was in production, who took the story from me and changed the front page.

I did the writing, editing, subbing, cast the headline, and Anaduaka planned the front page and continued the story inside.

I had to wake up very early the following morning to go back to Dodan Barack for the interpretation of the budget by Chief Olu Falae.

The interpretation took time also as he had to get clarification from General Babaginda about the breakdown of the budget.

It was always a challenging period for us as State House Correspondents because of its unpredictability.  

But the benefit  of it is that we travelled widely then both within and outside the country.

We travelled frequently with Babaginda,  the Chief of Defence Staff,  Ebetu Ukiwe; and Agustus Akhiomu.

Niger Republic was the first official visit of President Babaginda, and I was on that trip. Vanguard was lucky as it was one of the earliest independent newspapers that was always included in the president’s trips.

Vanguard newspaper was included more often than other newspapers.

Though the reporters were being rotated but Vanguard newspaper was always included, maybe because of the slant of our news reporting.

That probably endeared Vanguard newspaper to the powers that be and that endeared me to them too.

I left the State House when Babaginda was planning to move to Abuja, where we had gone with him several times. 

There was a building the State House Press Corp stayed then in Garki. But I just detested Abuja then. 

Maybe because I was trying to settle down with my wife at that time.

I asked Toye Akiyode, who had become the editor, if I could get a leave of absence from the State House, and it was granted. 

So, Dapo Olufade was sent to replace me at the State House.

Before I left Dodan Barracks I used to write a column, Dodan Diary, which was very popular then too as the column talked about the workings of government, how decisions were arrived at the coups and other issues. 

That died with me when I left the State House. 

Birth of Tourism Reporting

During one of the trips to Kenya with Babaginda and Chief Duro Onabule, the government spokesperson, he was fascinated with the flora and fauna of the country, asking when Nigeria will become a tourism haven.

I was fascinated, too, with all the places we stayed and the cultural display.

I thought of focusing on such tourism potentials that we also have in Nigeria.

When I returned to the news room again, I was made the assistant news editor and back to the office politics, which I ran away from initially.

I met with the Advert manager , Toney Awani, telling him how I can get him adverts from airlines and hotels.

I asked if they would make it advertorial and we got some adverts and my colleagues were surprised. 

The second week, we had a full page of advert and other adverts from the airlines for the tourism page.

To God be the glory when the tourism page finally took off, we always had adverts.

It will go down in the history of newspapering in Nigeria that a 54-page Vanguard edition was once published, and almost the entire content was about tourism – adverts. 

I am happy that when tourism reporting is discussed in Nigeria today, Vanguard newspaper will be remembered for its pioneering role, and I am happy I am part of it.

(Reported by Jimo Babatunde)