Recently updated on October 24th, 2022 at 03:29 pm
Winners have emerged at the 2018 Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA), held at the Federal Palace Hotel in Lagos.
Winners Of 2018 Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA)
- New Telegraph
Tony Okuyeme won the Entertainment Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘Lip-synching: Foreign invasion through films.’ Tony won over Eric Dumo of PUNCH.
Isioma Madike won the Banking and Finance Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘Criminals in banking hall.’ Osioma won over Femi Asu of the PUNCH.
Isioma Madike won the Cecil King Memorial Prize for Print Journalist of the Year, with his entry; “Kidnapping: ‘Big business’ that took over from armed robbery.”
Ajibade Samson, won the Bashorun MKO Abiola Prize for Sports Reporter of the Year. Samson won with his entry titled; ‘Dazed by fate, abandoned by country.’
Felix Chukwuma won the Lateef Jakande Prize for Political Reporter of the Year with his entry; ‘Vote-buying, twist in Nigeria’s polity.’
Omoniyi Oluwatosin won the Prize for Agriculture Reporter of the Year with the entry titled; ‘Vegetable farm: Women of calloused hands, financial power.’
Muritala Ayinla won the Prize for Culture and Tradition Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘Tribal marks, our identity, our pride.’
Kayode Olanrewaju won the Prize for Education Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘Policy inconsistency, bane of education development.’
Mojeed Alabi won the Gani Fawehinmi Prize for Human Rights Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘El-Zakzaky: Hurting memories of a massacre.’
Ogunbanke Temitope won the Prize for Foreign News Reporter of the Year award with the entry; ‘Slaves in Dubai, kings in Nigeria.’
Juliana Francis won the Prize for Defence Reporter of the Year award with the entry; ‘Why I stood naked at naval gate.’
- PUNCH Newspaper
PUNCH newspaper with its Editor – Martin Ayankola won the Editor of the Year award over Gbenga Omotosho of The Nation and Eze Anaba of Vanguard Newspaper.
A photojournalist with The PUNCH, Olatunji Obasa, won the News Photographer of the Year with his entry titled; ‘Shiite members confronting policemen during their protest against detention of their leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky in Abuja.‘
He defeated Abiodun Williams of The Nation.
Nike Popoola, won the Insurance Reporter of the Year Award with her entry titled; ‘NHIS: Health insurance still elusive to many Nigerians.’ Popoola, who had won this category over Ozioma Ubabukoh and Rosemary Onuha of Vanguard.
Samson Folarin, won the Investigative Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘Graduate dies after alleged wrong diagnosis by Lagos hospital.’ Samson won over Sulaimon Olarenwaju of Nigerian Tribune and Dorcas Egede of The Nation.
Abimbola Adelakun, won the Columnist of the Year award with her entry; ‘Nigerian men are afraid women will kill them.’
- The Nation Newspaper
The Nation won the Newspaper of the Year award (Babatunde Jose Prize) over PUNCH and The Guardian.
Chukuemeka Ugwuanyiwon the Power Reporter of the Year award with his entry; ‘Power headache: Will it ever get the right pill?’. He won over Toluwani Eniola of The PUNCH and Taiwo Adebulu of The Nation.
Collins Nweze won the Access Bank Prize for Capital Market Reporter of the Year award with his story titled; ‘Small Businesses groan as T-Bills, bonds grab attention.’
Collins Nweze won the UBA Prize for Money Market Reporter of the Year category with two entries. They are: ‘AMCON: restorer of businesses (1)’ and ‘Taxation: Endless games…Endless controversies’.
Duru Ekene Innocent won the 9Mobile Prize of Most Innovative Reporter of the Year award with two entries.
- Vanguard Newspaper
Emman Ovuakporie won the Oil and Gas Reporter of the Year award with his entry, ‘Intrigues, confusion of non-passage of 17 years old PIB.’ Emman won over Femi Asu of the PUNCH.
- Nigerian Tribune
Newton-Ray Ukwuoma won the Prize for Tourism Reporter of the Year with his entry titled; ‘Badagry: descendants of foremost slave merchant now live in cells he built for slaves.’
Nigerian Tribune received the inaugural 2018 Platinum Achievement Award.
- BusinessDay
The First Bank Prize for Business Publication of the Year was won by BusinessDay, which had the only nomination in the category.
- Radio & Television Categories
In the Radio Category, Mary Fatile of FRCN won the Radio Reporter and Presenter of the Year.
Ray Power won the Radio Broadcaster of the Year award.
Lagos Traffic Radio 96.1 won Radio Programme of the Year.
The NBC Prize for Radio Station of the Year was won by Radio Nigeria.
TV Continental was announced winner of the NBC Prize for Television Station of the Year over Channels Television.
Channels TV was named the TV Newscaster of the Year.
LTV 8 clinched the prize for Television Reporter of the Year.
Television Drama of the Year prize was won by Silverbird’s Liberty Villa.
2018 Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA)
The guest speaker, Professor Mike Ikupolati, who spoke on leadership at the 26th edition of the Nigerian Media Merit Awards, appealed to the Federal Government of Nigeria to make security of lives and property a priority, adding that journalists also deserved protection while performing their duties.
The Chairman, Panel of Assessors, Nigeria Media Merit Awards (NMMA), Professor Ralph Akinfeleye, said:
“For print, we had a total of 664 entries in 2017, while we recorded 473 entries in 2018. For radio, we had a total of 64 entries in 2017, while we recorded 31 entries in 2018. For television, we received a total of 28 entries in 2017, while we recorded 54 entries in 2018.
Overall, we had 554 entrants and 755 entries in 2017, and 460 entrants and 651 entries in 2018. This year, we had difficulty in picking winners in the Newspaper of the Year, Editor of the Year, Radio of the Year and Television of the Year categories. The scores were too close for comfort. The differences between the winners in the categories were marginal.
We had entries from other states apart from the South-West. We hope this will continue.”
