We start the third part of our subject matter today with the views of three thoroughbred professionals that journalism has produced in this country; the first is Steve Osuji, the journalist par excellence whom Oga Ray Ekpu, in his defence of Funtua, cynically and condescendingly referred to as “someone” and “the fellow”. Oh no, Mr. Ray Ekpu! Respect, as they say, begets respect. Besides, Osuji is not an unknown quantity in Nigerian journalism. He has made important contributions and, I dare to say, he has paid his dues and is still firing on all cylinders. To trample him so whimsically is to expose your own good self to being trampled as well.

Titled “Ismaila Funtua: At times like this, one’s ashamed to be a journalist in Nigeria, Osuji declared the ‘honour’ “a most dubious honour”. In many unflattering terms – and fittingly so – Osuji described the ‘honour’ as undeserved and advanced a plethora of reasons to buttress his position. Finally, he demanded that the decision be rescinded or else “I shall renounce my membership of the NGE and NUJ. I shall boycott the NIJ House. I shall seek every opportunity to campaign against this travesty and canvass that all journalists of goodwill should do the same”

In “Controversy, Ismaila Funtua, NPO, NIJ and the search for honour”, Lanre Idowu, CEO of Diamond Publications (of the DAME awards fame), reviewed what were touted as Funtua’s contributions to journalism after which he posed and answered the following questions: “Was it appropriate to seek to honour (Funtua) for his contributions? Yes. Was re-naming the NIJ House the appropriate honour? No. Was the speed to carry out the name change suspicious? Yes”. He then signed off with this: “Isa’s antecedents are not enough to cast him solely as an unassailable media hero whose name should replace the NIJ House”