NUJ IN HISTORY

SEGUN BALOGUN

In an attempt to promote decent work for all journalists and to free Nigeria from the colonial master led to the birth of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, (NUJ), under a six-man inaugural Executive Council at the premises of St. Paul's School, Breadfruit Street, Lagos, on March 15, 1955, marked the Zenith of years of a silent revolution for the actualization of a common front by some early nationalists who formed the core of a call for an independent Nigeria, via the power of the pen. 

In earlier times, such struggle that “Britain must go” had manifested in the expressed opinions, appearing in the now extinct newspapers including the Anglo African, The Eagle, Lagos Weekly Times, The Lagos Chronicles, The Lagos Standard, Lagos Weekly Record, The African Messenger, The Lagos Daily News, West African Pilot and others.

It was the collective activities and determinations of the nationalists and journalists in the early 1950’s that compelled the British colonial government to grant Nigeria independence without shedding blood.

At a distance, writing editorial comments and reporting the activities of the nationalists, trade unions, students and other bodies involved in the struggle to gain independence for Nigeria on the pages of newspapers.

 However, the journalists had no central body through which they could take any action like other groups. What they could not express as a body was done through newspapers.

The issue led to the group to form an organization like the Nigeria railway Workers Union or the workers of the Nigerian Maritime and Ports Authority  but no one was ready to take the bull by the horns. It was at this juncture that the late Chief Olu Oyesanya appeared on the scene. A fresh graduate of journalism from Britain, who had been exposed to professional union activities, his return to the country in 1954 did all the magic to set the stage for the formation of the union. 

While in Britain, he was a member of the Institute of Journalism, a purely professional body operating at Tudor Street near the popular Fleet Street in London. Though the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), Britain, was already in existence then, he claimed he was only aware of their operations but he was never a member. So, when he came, he went about mobilizing his colleagues.

The two principal officers that emerged were the late Mobolaji Odunewu, the first Nigerian Chief Information Officer as the President and late Chief Olu Oyesanya as the Secretary. Perhaps, it is only pertinent to reflect that though the first president of the union as well as its first secretary and other subsequent important officials were Information Officers, today, their presence in the union is generating a lot of controversy. 

Other members of the 6-man inaugural executive included the late Ebu Adesiye who was the Treasurer while there were three ex-officio members—Mr. Increase Cooker, Chief Bisi OnabanJo (Aiyckoto) and H. K. Offonry. 

One major issue that was settled at the second meeting was the appropriate name for the union. There were two schools of thought as to which name the body should bear. While the first school of thought said it should be Nigerian Union of Journalists, the second group argued that it should be Nigeria Union of Journalists.

According to the first school of thought, the union will be for only Nigerians practicing journalism.

This was faulted and it was argued that everyone practicing the trade in Nigeria could be a member of the union. Apart from Caucasians, it would be recalled that there were many journalists from other African countries in Nigeria then. The question of the status of the union was also strongly debated but this was settled in line with agitations of the young journalists who wanted a platform to fight their cases for better pay package.

From the very beginning, the NUJ was a trade union body. This was reflected in the laws governing the body and the union was also registered under the then Labour Laws Cap 2000. But despite the fact that it was a trade union constitution that was made, it lacked the details that could make it function effectively as a trade union. 

The operators too lacked the wherewithal as a trade union. This was one of the observations of the Abiodun Panel in the Restructuring of Trade Unions, which led to the demand that full time staff of all trade unions must have some trade union experience and also be imbued with the knowledge of the industry in which they operate.