• Warns against reducing remembrance to annual ritual
The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has called on relevant authorities to revisit the unresolved assassination of journalist and Newswatch co-founder, Dele Giwa, insisting that neither the passage of 40 years nor changes in government should extinguish the search for justice.
The Guild urged authorities to examine available credible evidence, preserve relevant records and pursue every lawful avenue towards establishing the truth, warning that the failure to bring Giwa’s killers to justice remained a troubling message to journalists investigating corruption and abuses of power.
Giwa was killed by a parcel bomb delivered to his home on October 19, 1986.
In a statement marking the 40th anniversary of his assassination, signed by its President, Eze Anaba, and General Secretary, Onuoha Ukeh, the NGE described the unresolved murder as a painful test of Nigeria’s commitment to press freedom, public accountability and the rule of law.
“Forty years is a long time to wait for justice. It is an unconscionably long time for a nation that claims to uphold the rule of law,” the Guild said.
“Governments may change, political actors may come and go, and national priorities may shift. But justice cannot be subjected to the convenience of political transitions.”
The Guild stressed that renewed investigation must be professional, impartial and respectful of individual rights.
“We are not calling for trial by media. We are not asking anyone to be condemned without evidence. We are demanding that a grave crime against a Nigerian citizen, a distinguished journalist and the freedom of the press should not remain an enduring symbol of impunity.
“An unresolved murder is not a closed chapter. It is an open wound in the nation’s conscience.”
The NGE said Giwa’s assassination went beyond the killing of an individual, describing it as an assault on the freedom to ask questions, expose wrongdoing and hold those in authority accountable.
It questioned the implications of the unresolved crime for reporters investigating corruption, editors probing abuses of power and journalists exposing dangerous interests.
“Does the passage of time diminish the seriousness of murder? Does the death of witnesses, the fading of public attention or the changing of governments extinguish the state’s obligation to pursue justice?
“Our answer must be an emphatic no.”
The Guild commended NEWSWATCH Plus Limited, led by Ray Ekpu, the only surviving member of the original Newswatch quartet, for preserving Giwa’s legacy through the book, Dele Giwa’s Granite Journalism.
It said the collection of his writings for Daily Times, Sunday Concord and Newswatch, alongside tributes from friends and contemporaries, would enable his work to continue speaking to future generations.
Describing Giwa as a journalist of uncommon audacity, intellectual rigour and literary elegance, the NGE said he demonstrated that journalism could interrogate power fearlessly while maintaining professional excellence.
“He understood that journalism is not a public relations department for those in authority, nor is it a convenient instrument for flattering the powerful. It is a public trust.”
The Guild also challenged contemporary journalists and editors to examine their independence from political and commercial interests, stressing that professional courage required verification, fairness and discipline.
“Granite journalism demands more than a dramatic headline or a provocative television appearance. It requires verification, courage, independence, fairness and a willingness to stand by the truth.
“Courage without accuracy can become recklessness; independence without ethics can become irresponsibility. The journalism worth defending is both fearless and scrupulous, both independent and accountable.”
It urged editors to protect newsroom integrity, publishers to resist intimidation and public authorities to tolerate scrutiny, while calling on security agencies to protect journalists from threats and attacks.
Where crimes were committed against media practitioners, it said, investigations must be thorough and capable of producing credible outcomes.
The NGE warned against reducing Giwa’s memory to annual speeches, tributes and wreath-laying without concrete action.
“Remembrance without action risks becoming an elaborate way of accommodating injustice,” it said.
It called for his professional ideals to be taught in journalism schools, discussed in newsrooms and preserved in the historical record, stressing that press freedom was a public cause because attacks on journalists threatened citizens’ access to independent information.
“Dele Giwa is gone, but the questions his murder left behind remain alive. The man was silenced; the search for justice must not be.”
The post Dele Giwa: NGE demands renewed probe 40 years after murder appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.