“During Isiguzo’s tenure, there were frequent whispers of political patronage influencing the union, from cosy relationships with government officials to reluctance to confront those in power. The NUJ’s complicity reached the point where many saw it as a compromised body, no longer an independent watchdog but a lapdog currying favour”.
BY HARUNA MOHAMMED SALISU
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), has a fresh start under Alhassan Yahaya, elected in late 2024 as the union’s new National President. Yahaya’s emergence comes with high expectations that he will promote journalists’ welfare and uphold the principles of good journalism. But to meet these expectations, the new NUJ leader must confront and break away from the toxic legacies of his predecessor, Chris Isiguzo.
Isiguzo’s two-term tenure at the helm of the NUJ was marred by allegations of corruption, weak advocacy, and a troubling cosiness with the very forces suppressing press freedom. His time as NUJ President left a bitter taste among many Nigerian journalists, including me.
Perhaps the most glaring blemish was the air of corruption and cronyism that seemed to hang over the union’s activities under Isiguzo.
Under him, the NUJ developed a habit of lavishing honours on powerful politicians – even those with notoriously poor press freedom and human rights records.
There are several striking examples. From Cross Rivers to Bauchi and from Benue to Kogi, the NUJ under Isiguzo was a total disgrace. Despite repeated hounding, beating, torture and incarceration of Agba Jalingo in Cross Rivers State, the NUJ was also consistent in giving awards to his tormentors.
Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed made headlines for threatening to “excommunicate” Hassan Ibrahim of the Daily Trust, detained for five days during the February Presidential election in 2023, in addition to repeated SLAPPs against WikkiTimes, and jailed Khalid Idris Doya of Leadership Newspapers for 10 days, even in Ramadan, yet the NUJ under Isiguzo quietly applauded him and even handed him an award.
Another striking example of NUJ’s stupid awards came during the 2024 World Press Freedom Day celebrations, when the NUJ presented an award to Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia as part of its “Press Freedom and Good Governance” awards. This choice sparked outrage.
Governor Alia’s administration was already infamous for gross human rights abuses, from flouting court orders to ordering the arrests of whistleblowers and critics. Journalists and observers were aghast that the NUJ would fete a leader who had quickly amassed one of the worst records of attacking civic freedoms, wondering how the NUJ found Governor Alia qualified for the rule of law Award.
It wasn’t just the Alia episode. During Isiguzo’s tenure, there were frequent whispers of political patronage influencing the union, from cosy relationships with government officials to reluctance to confront those in power. The NUJ’s complicity reached the point where many saw it as a compromised body, no longer an independent watchdog but a lapdog currying favour. Little wonder that trust in the union plummeted among frontline journalists. 
A union leader who should have been the voice of the voiceless pressed instead too often chose photo-ops with governors and ministers. These choices betrayed the NUJ’s founding mission to defend press freedom. Yahaya, stepping into this role, must recognise how corrosive this legacy is. He inherits a union tarnished by the perception of corruption and collusion, a perception he must urgently work to erase.
Even more damning than the whiff of corruption was Isiguzo’s tepid advocacy for journalists’ rights during a period of escalating press suppression in Nigeria. Under his watch, the country’s press freedom climate deteriorated sharply – yet the NUJ’s voice was often missing when it mattered most.
Consider that between 2019 and 2024 alone, the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) verified 759 attacks on the press, ranging from arrests and brutal assaults to censorship by regulatory bodies.
Many of these abuses were perpetrated by state actors. Media rights monitors reported that Nigerian security agencies – police, military, and intelligence – accounted for the majority of attacks on journalists in recent years.
Reporters Without Borders’ 2025 World Press Freedom Index saw Nigeria plummet 10 places to a lowly 122nd out of 180 countries, reflecting a climate of fear for reporters. From newsroom raids to journalists being abducted or detained for weeks, press freedom in Nigeria has been under siege.
Yet, while these violations piled up, the NUJ under Isiguzo was largely a mute witness. Apart from generic press releases, the union offered little in the way of bold, sustained pushback or support for victims. For instance, Nigerian authorities have blatantly weaponised laws like the Cybercrime (Prohibition) Act 2015 to intimidate and jail journalists for their reporting. This draconian law – especially its vague Section 24 on “cyberstalking” – has been repeatedly used to arrest reporters on spurious charges of “offensive” online posts.
Even after a 2024 amendment, several journalists have been arrested, prosecuted, or detained under the cybercrime law’s provisions. The misuse of this law has drawn condemnation from press freedom advocates. In a joint statement for World Press Freedom Day, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) had appealed to the Federal Government of Nigeria to scrap the Act and stop using it to intimidate and harass journalists.
Conspicuously absent from such strong advocacy was the NUJ leadership. While groups like SERAP, NGE, CJID, and the International Press Centre were shouting from the rooftops about these legal threats to journalism, Isiguzo’s NUJ was largely quiet or at best late to the party.
The Union’s silence was deafening during some of the worst moments. When roughly 56 journalists were assaulted and arrested during #EndBadGovernance protests, it was international organisations like the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders sounding the alarm.
The NUJ offered no immediate outrage commensurate with the gravity of the attacks. Likewise, when journalists like Segun Olatunji (editor of FirstNews) and Daniel Ojukwu (of FIJ) and WikkiTimes journalists were either abducted or detained by security forces and government officials, their release came only after heavy pressure from bodies like the CPJ, CCIJ, IPI etc – with the NUJ playing a secondary role. Isiguzo’s NUJ should have been leading these fights, not bringing up the rear.
To be fair, Isiguzo occasionally voiced support for press freedom in words. For example, at an NUJ award night in May 2024, he grandly declared that “press freedom is not a privilege but a right… not a luxury but a necessity”. (This was the same event, ironically, where his union gave Governor Alia an award, blunting the credibility of those words.) Earlier in his tenure, Isiguzo even took a strong stance against a proposed Social Media Bill that would have gagged online speech – telling a Senate hearing in 2020 that the NUJ was “totally opposed” to any law that “seeks to pigeonhole Nigerians from freely expressing themselves.”.
The problem was that such moments of principle were rare and inconsistent. Fine rhetoric was not followed by consistent action. Isiguzo’s administration will be remembered for its passivity and silence in the face of rampant press intimidation. This advocacy failure left Nigerian journalists defenceless and demoralised, unsure if their union would truly go to bat for them when push came to shove.
Many frontline journalists privately say they place more hope in NGOs and international watchdogs than in their own union to come to their aid. That is a damning indictment of an organization that has existed for over 70 years supposedly to champion journalists’ rights.
Why this failure? A huge part of the problem is the compromised nature of the NUJ’s leadership, exemplified by Isiguzo’s tenure when a union president is busy currying favour with governors (even offering “Friends of the Media” plaques to officials who jail critics), it’s hard to speak truth to power.
The NUJ under Isiguzo often appeared beholden to political interests or simply more interested in maintaining cordial relations with the government than in sparing no one’s feelings for the sake of press freedom. This sapped the union’s moral authority. How could the NUJ credibly condemn a governor’s abuses when only days before it was photographed handing that same governor an award and smiling for the cameras?
Another terrible legacy of Isiguzo is that his opaque finances and undemocratic practices at some state NUJ council persisted, reflecting a union that needed reform from within. Even as journalists across Nigeria braved threats, some NUJ officials were allegedly busy pursuing personal agendas and perks. The result was a union that lost the confidence of many of its members.
In the court of public opinion, the NUJ was increasingly seen as a compromised body doing the bidding of its paymasters – an impression fatal to any advocacy organisation’s credibility.
Alhassan Yahaya inherits this troubled institution. The challenges before him are stark: to restore the NUJ’s integrity, he must prove that the union can no longer be bought or cowed.
To restore its relevance, he must reinvigorate its will to fight vigorously for journalists. Anything less would doom the NUJ to further irrelevance at a time when Nigerian journalists desperately need a champion. The good news is that Yahaya’s clean slate is an opportunity to reboot the union’s culture. I know him to be decent, humble and well-respected. That is an opportunity for him. Addressing the rot head-on can enable him to transform the NUJ from a passive, compromised bystander into a bold defender of the press, precisely what it was always meant to be.
To chart a new course, Yahaya must avoid Isiguzo’s toxic legacy and truly make a difference. He needs a clear reform plan. Here is a simple suggestion for him—call it a roadmap if you like.
- Clean the House and Restore Integrity: Yahaya’s first order of business must be rebuilding trust within the union. He should institute transparency and zero tolerance for corruption in NUJ affairs. That means putting an end to the “awards for cash” syndrome and any perception that union honours are for sale. Never again should the NUJ decorate known press freedom violators for political expediency. Instead, the union’s praise should be reserved for true champions of the media. Yahaya can send a powerful signal by publicly committing that under his leadership, integrity comes first. An independent audit of the NUJ’s finances and a code of conduct for officials would be wise steps to assure members that the union’s resources and platform won’t be misused. Rebuilding internal democracy – ensuring that elections from the national down to the chapel level are free of manipulation – will also help restore faith. Yahaya must lead by example, demonstrating personal integrity and distancing himself from politicians’ patronage. A union that cleans its own house will be in a stronger position to confront the powers that be.
- Forge Alliances with Reformers and Advocacy Groups: One of Isiguzo’s critical failings was his insularity – the NUJ did not collaborate effectively with other press freedom advocates. Organisations like the CJID, Media Rights Agenda (MRA), International Press Centre (IPC), SERAP, the Committee to Protect Journalists, among many others, have demonstrated genuine commitment and willingness to support the Nigerian Journalism ecosystem. These organisations are powerhouses of ideas, knowledge and integrity. They were treated like rivals under Isiguzo, not partners in the fight for a free press. Yahaya ought to reach out and form a coalition or working group that speaks with a unified voice on key issues. For example, legal reforms to improve the media landscape should be a top priority. There is already momentum in this direction – in July 2024, Nigeria’s House of Representatives passed a resolution to enact laws protecting press freedom, a move commended by CJID. The NUJ should be leading such efforts on the legislative front. Yahaya can lobby lawmakers to amend or repeal repressive laws like the Cybercrime Act’s Section 24, which is used to criminalise journalists. He should also champion the passage of positive bills, such as a federal Whistleblower Protection law that would shield journalists and citizens who expose corruption (an idea the NUJ itself endorsed in late 2024 alongside anti-graft agencies).
- Confront Anti-Press Policies and Power Abuse Head-On: The Yahaya-led NUJ should adopt an unapologetically pro-press freedom agenda in its dealings with government and security agencies. This means shedding the past timidity and directly challenging policies or actions that muzzle the media. For instance, Yahaya should engage with the Minister of Information and the National Assembly to reform the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission’s punitive regulations that have been used to fine and sanction media houses for coverage unfavourable to authorities. He should demand an end to the practice of using security laws to suppress reporters, whether it’s the Cybercrime Act, trumped-up treason charges, or blanket orders banning journalists from government functions. The NUJ under Yahaya must insist on accountability for crimes against journalists. Nigeria has a long history of violence against the press with almost total impunity. (The CJID documented 1,034 attacks on journalists from 1986 to 2023, with very few perpetrators brought to justice.) Yahaya can press the Inspector-General of Police and heads of security forces to establish special protocols for dealing with offences against journalists. For example, the NUJ should push for every attack on a journalist to trigger a swift, public investigation and for those responsible – be it a police officer or political thug – to face consequences. This might involve setting up a joint NUJ-government task force on journalist safety. It might mean advocating for the activation of the National Media Complaints Commission (Ombudsman) mechanism, so that grievances against journalists are handled via mediation and not violence. The bottom line is that Yahaya must be fearless in confronting officials who undermine press freedom. Whether it’s a minister, a governor, or even the President, the NUJ should call out policies that gag the press. Silence or diplomatic platitudes won’t cut it – the union’s stance must be firm and public.
- Be the Loud, Unapologetic Voice for Journalists in Danger: Under Yahaya, the NUJ needs to rediscover its voice – loud, principled, and timely. When a journalist is arrested, attacked, or threatened anywhere in Nigeria, the NUJ should be the first responder in the media space, issuing strong statements, mobilising legal aid, and alerting the public. This is not just about press releases; it’s about creating a culture where the union consistently stands up for its members. Yahaya should set up an emergency response team within the NUJ that monitors press freedom violations (in coordination with trackers like CJID’s) and responds within hours, not days. Quick, robust responses – condemning abuses and demanding redress – will signal to would-be repressors that the Nigerian press is not alone; they have a powerful body watching their backs. Yahaya can increase the NUJ’s engagement with international watchdogs like CPJ and RSF, so that local incidents gain global attention and pressure. The new NUJ leadership should also embrace media publicity for these issues – op-eds, press conferences, and social media campaigns that document press freedom battles. For example, if a state government bans a journalist from coverage (as happened in past incidents), Yahaya himself should be on the ground (or on the airwaves) in that state, standing next to the affected journalist and denouncing the ban. Such visibility would be a dramatic departure from the past and would rebuild journalists’ confidence that their union truly has their backs. Yahaya must become the bold public champion the NUJ has lacked – never hesitating to offend the powerful when he’s speaking up for what’s right.
Lastly, Alhassan Yahaya’s tenure as NUJ President will succeed or fail based on whether he can dramatically change the union’s trajectory set under Chris Isiguzo. The task before him is both daunting and vital. He must excise the toxicity of corruption and complacency that plagued the NUJ and instead imbue the organisation with integrity, courage, and purpose. This means holding power to account, not holding court with power. It means prioritising the safety and freedom of journalists over politeness or personal comfort. To effectively do this, Yahaya has to surround himself with intellectuals within and outside the NUJ who would help him reform the organisation. Stay away from the docile, inept, weak members who whisper stupidity and pursue vendettas. I know you to be a fine gentleman. We shall document your successes or failures after your mandate. I hope and pray that history will be kind to you– not in the ways of your predecessor.
Congratulations!
…Salisu is the Publisher of WikkiTimes. He can be reached via harunababale@wikkitimes.com
