By Jossy NKWOCHA
Right from my youth, my life has been built around writing, being inquisitive, asking questions, etc.
In secondary school, I was the Editor of the Press Club. At the Nigerian Institute of Journalism Lagos, I was also Editor-in-Chief of the Press Club, and I maintained a weekly notice board column called “Nkwo-White.” Everyone in the Institute called me “Nkwo-White.”
While we were on holidays in mid-1984, I got wind of a new newspaper called Vanguard that was about to start publication, located along Kirikiri Canal, somewhere after Mile 2.
I was so curious to know the place and test my journalism training so far.
One Wednesday around 12 noon, I found myself there and asked to see the Editor, Mr. Muyiwa Adetiba. A calm, easy-going man, he welcomed me into his office, asked me a few questions and agreed to allow me to have practical journalism training in Vanguard.
Mr. Adetiba immediately gave me an assignment. “Go to the Lagos State Police Command headquarters on Isaac John Street, Ikeja and get a crime story from there” he directed me.
I wondered what a simple man he was, and not given to many protocols. I was excited.
I found my way to the State Police office, introduced myself as a journalist from Vanguard and was directed to the office of the State Police Public Relations Officer, Alozie Ogugbuaja, a very jovial man and friendly to journalists.
I introduced myself and my mission, but he replied that there was no major incident that day; that I should come back at 11am the next day, Thursday. Throughout the night, all my mind was on the assignment and the story I would get for the first edition of Vanguard coming out that Sunday, I can’t recall the date now.
As early as 10am I was in the office of Superintendent Alozie Ogugbuaja, the police PRO. He directed one of his staff Sergeant Nkwocha (what a coincidence) to look through the citrep and bring to him a story that was good for publishing. He did and it was a heinous murder case in Lagos.
I immediately copied the sketchy information on the citrep and ran back to Vanguard to write the story.
My excitement knew no bounds as I sat in the small Brick building containing both editors and reporters. It was the first building in Vanguard Newspapers.
Confidently, I went to the corner where editor Muyiwa Adetiba sat, reading through a handful of stories filled by other reporters. Immediately I approached him, he was surprised that I already had a story.
He quickly took the script from me, read the story quickly and his mien changed, and he charged at me: “Who is teaching you news reporting!” He threw the script away.
I almost cried.
But I couldn’t give up. I picked up the script, and took it to the deputy editor, Mr. Toye Akiyode whose office was next. He witnessed what happened. I told him I needed to know what to do for the story to be acceptable.
Toye Akiyode, who spotted a fine moustache and looked more patient with a beginner like me, took the script, read it and pointed out several gaps that needed to be filled up.
“You didn’t ask relevant questions to the police, even if they don’t want to be quoted. Your story is hollow, Josiah. You need to go back there, get all the information that will make your story complete, and then interview the police PRO about the incident,” he directed me with a voice that sounded so gentle.
I was relieved to say the least!
Determination, they say, is the hallmark of success. I found my way to Mile 2 and to the police office through Maryland.
Fortunately, Sergeant Nkwocha was there to help me to see some police detectives who were handling the case, they spoke to me anonymously and I eventually interviewed police PRO Alozie Ogugbuaja.
It was already late to get back to Vanguard that evening. Back home in Onipanu-Palmgrove where I lived with my Aunty, Mrs. Jane Ukwioma and her family, I spent a lot of time re-writing the story, and adding all the things Deputy editor Toye Akiyode had asked me to do.
The next day I went to Vanguard and submitted the story to Editor, Muyiwa Adetiba who asked me to give it to Toye to look at. Toye took the story from me and smiled, sipped a bottle of beer on his table and asked me to go sit down. I breathed a sigh of relief.
What a relief!
Much later, I went back to ask him if I could go home. “Yeah, you can go. You will go far. You are determined,” he said.
Wow! On Sunday, the first edition of Vanguard, my story made it to the front page with the byline “By Josiah Nkwocha” Even as a student journalist I became a Crime Reporter for Vanguard and was later assigned to work with the Newspaper’s Chief Crime Correspondent Ochiama Ahia, a thoroughbred crime buster who was hired from Punch.
It was at Vanguard I thereafter took the pen name “Jossy” that has followed me till this day!
And up till this day I have never forgotten that experience of my first story in Vanguard newspaper. A few years ago, when Mr. Toye Akiyode turned 70 years, I called him up, wished him happy birthday, recalled that experience, thanked him profusely and told him how he and Muyiwa Adetiba were my first practical journalism teachers in Vanguard.
That’s 40 years ago and our dear Vanguard is marking its 40th anniversary. Vanguard from Day one was unique in its stories and their presentation. It captured the human angle of any story, and readers embraced the new baby.
Vanguard and its editors made me a superstar at a very young age in the profession. We were paid according to the number of news stories, features, interviews, business stories, opinions or entertainment stories we wrote. I wrote for all sections of the newspaper: News, Features, Business, opinion, column among others.
I eventually became a pioneer alumnus of the Vanguard newspaper.
Indeed, Vanguard was a training ground for some of us including Deba Uwadiae, Joy Ege, Nkanu Egbe, Alban Opara, Tosan, the late Ogbonnaya Amadi, among others.
As a reporter, many people thought I was an editor. The features editor, Elly Obasi, gave me assignments that made it to the Centrespread of the newspaper and would celebrate me as if I won an Olympic gold medal. Elly Obasi was such a lovely guy. He loved flowery writing.
Each time you submit a feature story to him, he would blow off his cigarette smoke and castigate you for your poor sense of prose. “It’s like you have not read Richard Dickson or even Hadley Chase. Go and read and come back,” he would holler at you. I would pick my script and go rework it to suit his style and when you submit it, he would take a cool glance at it and ask you to go to The Canal (Vanguard Bar and Restaurant) and drink on his account.
One of my celebrated Centrespread features was on Suicide which ran for two days. It dealt with stories of people who committed suicide, their reasons based on suicide notes I obtained, the cultural, psychological and sociological aspects of suicide, and interviews with Prof Peter Omoluabi, a clinical psychologist at the University of Lagos and a criminologist whose name I can’t recall now.
I wrote several other features on Health issues which saw me covering the health beat sometimes with the late Rachael Anyigbo. May her soul rest in peace.
Elly Obasi was my next journalism trainer in Vanguard. Unfortunately, he died later in the United States. May the Lord rest his soul.
My next journalism trainer in Vanguard was Jimi Disu, the elite Business Editor whose thick medicated glasses were like a trademark. He usually called me to his side to lecture me on business reporting. Once in a while he will ask me to go cover an Annual General Meeting of a public quoted company or a bank. When I come back, I will write a business story out of it and do a feature which would be so refreshing and different from what had been reported.
I always looked for the uncommon things that entice readers. But Jimi Disu was more than a journalism teacher to me. He inspired me.
“You are too bright and determined. Before you get too deep into this journalism thing, you must leave and go back to school. You can’t continue being just a reporter. Your stakes are high,” Jimi Disu advised me. I owe him thanks that I later left journalism to go back to school that enabled me to become what I am today.
Terry Adewale and Augustine Nkwocha were among reporters on the Business Desk.
Uche Onyebadi, a very simple man who edited the opinion pages was another inspiration to me. One day he asked me to do him an opinion article on a subject he mentioned. I did and submitted it to him. Two days later, I saw it published.
What a surprise!
He thereafter asked for my photograph which the Vanguard stylist artist Uncle Bayo carved a portrait of me. I then started contributing to “Personal View” edited by Uche Onyebadi, who is now a professor in the US.
When Muyiwa Adetiba left to found Prime People magazine, Toye Akiyode became editor and Kris Okojie, jovial, heavy smoker, the erstwhile Sports editor became the Deputy editor. I never reported sports, so I was not close to Kris.
I also didn’t report entertainment so I was not so close to Fola Arogundade who was the editor and another nice man at that time. Late Ogbonnaya Amadi and late Akeem Ukandu, another heavy smoker worked with him.
When Kris Okojie became deputy editor, he took interest in me because he also supervised the newsroom. One evening in 1986, or thereabout, I had come back from my Crime beat to see a message that the Deputy editor asked me to see him. I went over to his office. He looked at me and smiled. “Get ready to travel to Zaria this evening. There’s a student’s riot at Bayero University, Samaru Campus Zaria. A student Farida Mustapha was killed by soldiers who invaded the University campus to quell the riot. You must go there this evening on the last flight,” he ordered with Editorial finality.
“Put some money for enjoyment there” he smiled and gave me a certain sign well known in the newsroom. Indeed, newsroom is a place of fun.
I quickly sent Deba Uwadiae, my colleague, to inform my Aunty about my assignment to Zaria. My Aunty was terrified but what could she do other than pray for my safe return.
I arrived in Zaria that night and combed all news sources, interviewed all relevant people, got relevant photographs and flew back to Lagos the next day. Kris the deputy editor, Frank Aigbogun, the news editor and Elly Obasi the Features editor were all waiting for me with excitement.
When I returned I wrote a major news story which was front page lead the next day and others that were used subsequently. I also wrote a features piece which Elly Obasi ran for two days on the Centrespread.
The Farida Mustapha story shot up my profile in Vanguard.
Frank Aigbogun, the news editor saw something in me and another colleague, Emeka Mamah and will always ask us to stay back to rewrite stories filed by state correspondents.
Oga Frank was feared by all reporters because he does not joke with deadlines. But he taught me “to have business sense”. He would always tell me and Emeka, “Instead of collecting brown envelopes, think of what you could do for companies in a professional way.”
I made sure I taught the same lessons to my subordinates when I became General Editor of Newswatch magazine between 1999 and 2002 before I moved into PublicRelationspractice.
As Vanguard marks its 40th anniversary I felicitate and sincerely appreciate the newspaper and the publisher, Uncle Sam Amuka for giving me the opportunity for my early years in journalism.
*Dr Jossy Nkwocha, KSC, MNGE, FNIPR is currently the Group Head, Corporate Communications at Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals and Fertilizer Group, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
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