Dark times as 7 media workers die within 6 weeks in Cross River
Within six weeks the media in Cross River State last seven workers leaving the sector in jeopardy. It is not the best of times for the media in Cross River State as seven staff of various organizations died within a spade of six weeks leaving family and friends in deep sorrow. Never in the history […]
Dark times as 7 media workers die within 6 weeks in Cross River
- Within six weeks the media in Cross River State last seven workers leaving the sector in jeopardy.
It is not the best of times for the media in Cross River State as seven staff of various organizations died within a spade of six weeks leaving family and friends in deep sorrow. Never in the history of the state have media workers died in such large number within a short time.
They included four journalists and two former media workers.
The journalists who died are the immediate past state chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ndoma Akpet. He died of cancer-related issues. The 55-year-old is a news director with Cross River Broadcasting Corporation. He was married to another reporter, Lucy Akpet who, too, works in the same organisation.
Dr Oshega Abang, another director of the organization had retired and went on to lecture at the University of Calabar. He was in his mid 60s. He was reported to have slumped and died almost immediately. He had since been buried.
Two other senior journalists who passed on were the former Editor and later General Manager, Nigerian Chronicle, Mr Unimke Columbus Nawa. He started journalism when he was posted to Sokoto State Ministry of Information for his national youth service in the 70s.
Also reported dead within the same period were Otu Archibong, a proofreader who incidentally was into publishing and printing, Mr Effiok Eyo Effiom, a security man as well as Joseph Ogba, a Circulation Manager, all from the Nigeria Chronicle.
Then, only few days ago, Steve Onoh, the online editor of the Nigerian Chronicle gave up the ghost.
Lamenting their sudden passages while inaugurating a funeral committee headed by Judex Okoro, chairman of the state correspondents’ chapel and correspondent of Sun newspaper, state NUJ Chairman, Comrade Victor Udu said: “We were coming back from a burial of one of our former General Manager of the Nigeria Chronicle, Mr Unimke Nawa when we got information on the death of the former Chairman of the NUJ, Comrade Ndoma Akpet.
“Following that, as we were preparing for the burial of Ndoma, we got information about the death of the online editor of Nigerian Chronicle, Steve Onoh and two others in same organisation.”
According to him, each of them died with medical challenges and advised journalists to have regular health checks.
He pointed out that he believed that if the people that died visited hospitals to know their health status, the problems would have been arrested or maybe their lives extended.
Udu said it is painful and those living should not play with their health and what they do, the kind of food they eat and drinks as well as their lifestyles.
He noted that the NUJ are looking forward to a situation where doctors and other health experts can come to give health tips and help live a better life.
The Editor-in-Chief of Nigerian Chronicle, Samuel Egbala, said the media recorded its saddest moment with the loss of very senior and dedicated staff and appealed to the remaining staff to re-examining themselves health wise.