I WAS TAKEN FOR A RASCAL IN SCHOOL
I am married to one woman. What I have going for me is that I do everything in moderation. On a lighter-mood, is there any journalist who does not womanize?
– Segun Osoba
Daily Trust: What was your early life like?
Chief Segun Osoba: I was born some 78 years ago to Pa and Ma Jonathan Babatunde Osoba in an Egba settlement in Osogbo, Osun State. Growing up was somehow interesting and challenging. I attended the Methodist Boys High School (MBHS) Lagos. Some interesting things happened while in school then. I was an intelligent young chap then but also considered a small rascal by the school authority. I was not smoking and I had never smoked nor drank alcohol in my entire life. However, the school authority thought that I smoke, so they set up a panel to monitor me. Members of the committee kept on trailing me wherever I go to. I never got to know this until we were about to graduate from secondary school. So, while those asked to monitor my movement kept on tailing me, those who were smoking had a field day. At the end, they were disappointed because they never saw me smoking. After secondary school, I obtained a diploma in Journalism from the University of Lagos and later went for a year course in the United Kingdom on the scholarship of the Commonwealth Press. DT: What were your days like as a young journalist? Osoba: My days as a young journalist were very interesting, fun-filled and challenging. Journalists now are lazy; they have everything to work with which will enhance their performance yet they are not utilizing them. You can do a lot of thing with your phone, if you know how to manipulate it. When I am not busy, I engage myself in learning new things using my phone. I have so many musical collection stored in my phone and when I am traveling, I will just put on my earpiece and listen to old tunes. Back to my days as a young journalist, as you all know by now, I started my career in journalism in 1964 with Daily Times as a trainee reporter. I was on the crime desk then and by 1966, I was moved to the diplomatic desk as a correspondent. I became news editor in 1968, deputy editor of the Sunday Times in 1971 and deputy editor of the Times in 1972. In August 1975, I became the Editor of the Daily Times of Nigeria, the largest newspaper in Africa then.
As a young reporter, I got my first major scoop in 1966 with a report I did which was published in the Daily Times of January 23, 1966 on the death of Tafawa Balewa. I was the first reporter to see his corpse, which was dumped alongside that of Chief Okotie Eboh, the then finance minister. However, I left Daily Times in 1975 to take up the task of General Manager of Nigerian Herald in Ilorin, Kwara State. I went back to Daily Times in 1984 as the managing director. Aside working with Daily Times, I also worked as stringer or local correspondent for the BBC, The Times of London, Newsweek Magazine, United Press International (UPI) News Agency.
A reporter must have nose for news; this aspect of journalism cannot be taught in the classroom. Though a reporter must not be a specialist in the field, he must have a little knowledge of everything. A reporter has no working hours; you sleep, eat journalism. A good reporter must nurture his contacts. I feel a reporter must be bold and courageous, as well as being a good mixer among people, whether high or low calibre. I had an edge over some of my colleagues because I had a scooter and a telephone line at home besides keeping and courting good sources of news. So, as a reporter, you must be mobile and have a reliable means of communication with your sources at all times. As a professional media practitioner, you must go online to occupy the space so that it could drive out those who are operating in that space unprofessionally.
Journalists of today have no reason not to do better than my generation because they have opportunities of being better trained;
however, it is sad to note that motivation is a huge minus, as many media houses do not pay their staff while those who pay do not pay well. Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) and Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) should meet to fashion out a way forward on the issue, as it is embarrassing for the profession, which is why some reporters are unethical in their conduct and reportage. DT: Tell us about your political career
I went into politics because I wanted to join in the rebuilding of this country but a lot of things went wrong in the past. I was first elected as governor of Ogun State in 1992 on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) but was removed from office in 1993 by the military administration of late Gen. Sani Abacha.
I contested and won again on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) between May 1999 and May 2003. As governor then I made moves to ensure that manufacturing companies have a place in Ogun State but when I left office, some of the big companies relocated to Lagos because some people were asking them for money before they would be given the land I had approved for them. I am still in politics. DT: What about marriage?
I am married to one woman. What I have going for me is that I do everything in moderation.On a lightermood, is there any journalist who does not womanize? The newsroom is a complete place, which is why it is referred to as “mad house”. DT: Do you have any business interests?
Yes, I am a director with African Circle Pollution Management Limited. It is involved in what you call Marine Pollution (MAPOL). The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has an international convention which does not allow ships to indiscriminately dump waste in the ocean and waterways. This is to protect the environment.
What we do is to collect waste from vessels that ply Nigerian waterways. We collect all kinds of waste including petroleum waste. We don’t just take this waste and dump them in dump sites, we treat the waste in line with the international standard of the marine waste management. That is what the newly acquired equipment we commissioned in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State is meant for. We collect the waste, transport them through barges and vessels to site, and then recycle.
The equipment we just acquired cost about $4.5million. We acquired it from Netherlands. It is highly technical, professional, most modern, and the best in the west coast of Africa, if not the whole of Africa. IMO does not allow incineration of waste anymore. So we now recycle waste in such a way that no harm is done to the waterways, lagoon, ocean and human beings. DT: How are you paid?
We are contractors to NPA, but those vessels are certified in line with international standard and they allow us to come onboard to take the waste, after which the ship owners pay in dollars to NPA who in turn pays us. Though NPA is still indebted to us, but from the way things are being managed now, I don’t have any doubt that we will get paid.
Before the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and before the emergence of the current management of NPA, it was difficult to get our money released to us. That affected the performance of our functions and duties. That was before now. However, the current management has put a stop to all that in such a way that once a job is done to the actual specification, the contractor gets paid and his money is not trapped as was the case previously. DT: What’s your assessment of the NPA?
Without sounding hypocritical and using exaggerated language, it has been most rewarding since Hadiza Bala Usman came in. Before she came in, we had accumulated invoices that were not paid. She has been able to reduce bureaucracy in the NPA and it has resulted in more efficiency in the business transaction with NPA. I don’t want to quote figures but we were happy when suddenly we got paid about 70 percent of the accumulated invoices of the past. I can tell you that helped us to reinvest in the acquisition of equipment. We were able to meet up with the current trend because she did the needful in releasing our accumulated fund.
DT: What is your take on alleged corruption in the NPA?
If anybody is complaining about Hadiza Bala Usman, from our perception, it then means that person is not transparent. That is my own view. She is very transparent. If you are not compliant to rules and regulation, of course you may run into trouble
Now, I do not need to bother my head about having to beg around the management of the NPA. Whatever is due to us is done in an efficient manner and fortunately, we have a situation where the Central Bank pays the contractor
with her.
Secondly, I was very close to her father, when he was alive. Balarabe Musa, as governor of old Kaduna State, appointed the father as Secretary to the Kaduna State Government then. The National Party of Nigeria (NPN) was giving the People’s Redemption Party (PRP) governor a hell of a time and I virtually moved the Sketch regional headquarters to Kaduna, to give objective coverage to an event in Kaduna. Balarabe Musa linked me up with Dr. Bala Usman. He was a highly progressive minded person. I am saying this because I believe that his daughter is not doing what she is doing just by accident. She is doing this from what she must have learnt from the orientation she got from the father. Therefore, I am not surprised, but I am very happy.
DT: What was your relationship with the NPA like before the emergence of Hadiza Bala Usman?
I can confess to you that in the past there was lots of lobbying, a lot of begging to get our rights as a company attended to. That was the situation. Now, I do not need to bother my head about having to beg around the management of the NPA. Whatever is due to us is done in an efficient manner.