Inuwa Wada: Exit of a resourceful reporter
It is two weeks now since then, however. The late Wada had gone on May 26, and has long been buried in his Ibume village in Dekina Local Government area of Kogi State. He died at the age of 39. Family members said Inuwa died in his sleep in his Lafia residence in Angwan Nungu […]
It is two weeks now since then, however. The late Wada had gone on May 26, and has long been buried in his Ibume village in Dekina Local Government area of Kogi State. He died at the age of 39.
Family members said Inuwa died in his sleep in his Lafia residence in Angwan Nungu section of Lafia. The death has not been traced to any cause.
“He returned home in the night and went straight to bed at about 8pm because it was raining. He was hale and hearty when he went to bed”, Joseph Wada, the late reporter’s father had told Sunday Trust, tearfully.
He returned from the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), after he finished casting the 7pm news in Hausa, on May 25. Inuwa who worked as a reporter for Aminiya, took up a contract job with NTA as a newscaster, and also worked as a freelance reporter for Radio Hamada.
His last reports in Aminiya were “How bride stabbed self to death”, on page four of Weekly Trust, and “Akwanga woman delivers baby without limbs”, on the cover page of Aminiya, the vernacular publication.
The father of the deceased said neighbours had earlier knocked at his (the late Inuwa’s) door when they did not hear from him, nor see him by about 7am of that fateful day. “They called and called. His phone was ringing inside his house. So they had to break the door. My son was lying dead. That is what happened”, the father had said.
The late reporter’s mother, Caroline Wada, only wailed on and on, together with her children – the late Inuwa’s three brothers and three sisters. At the residence was a crowd which gathered to mourn. He is survived by his parents, three brothers and three sisters.
Inuwa died barely a month after he returned from his would-be wife’s ancestral home where he had visited to introduce himself, and commence marriage arrangements. “He was working hard to fix the marriage date when he died”, the father had said.
His fiancée told Sunday Trust they spoke when Inuwa was about to go to bed on the night of May 25. “He called me to find out about my brother’s condition in the hospital. He also informed me that he would be travelling to Abuja the next morning. I only woke up with a call informing me that he died”, she had said.
The management of Media Trust Limited, publishers of Daily Trust, Weekly Trust, Sunday Trust, and Aminiya, expressed deep sadness over the death, describing Inuwa as a dedicated staff. The Managing Editor of the newspaper, Mallam Suleiman Mohammed, who established immediate contact with the parents of the late reporter on phone, said the management prayed for the repose of his soul and for God to grant the family the fortitude to bear the great loss.
A team of editors from Aminiya, also followed up with a condolence visit, shortly after, at the family residence in Lafia. The team he worked with in Aminiya, expressed grief, saying they would miss his reportage of human angle incidents in Nasarawa and beyond.
The leadership of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Nasarawa State, also expressed sadness, describing the loss as a painful one. “This is a great loss to the media family. The late Wada was a journalist of proven integrity, who performed his duty diligently and ethically. He was one journalist who exhibited high standards and ensured balance and objectivity.
“On behalf of Nasarawa State Council of NUJ, I condole with Media Trust Limited, his family, and entire journalists in Nasarawa State”, the statement from the NUJ, was signed by Ahmed Tukur, the council’s secretary, said.
Meanwhile the Lafia residence of the late reporter attracted hordes of sympathizers, mostly journalists, who supported the family through the arrangements to deposit the corpse at the mortuary. He was buried days later, and his relatives are back to Lafia.
The late Wada was a champion in the hearts of many: his colleagues who were inspired by his nose for news; victims of social injustices whose cross he bore; prominent newsmakers whose humble beginning, and uniqueness he brought up for readers to read.The late Wada was versatile widely read, and hailed.
A tall, slim-built, but energetic man, the late Wada wore a face of innocence. His lips never concealed his teeth; not that he had too much a fine set, but that he never held back a smile. Meeting the late reporter was like making one’s day: he bowed at every greeting, and smiled at every face.
He had a long nose, whose end had the shape of the end of a nail. The shape and length of his nose typified his successful career as a journalist with a long nose for news. He broke many stories; and many of his colleagues only trailed behind in reporting them. His colleagues in Lafia often said it was not a big deal that Inuwa was first at every story. They joked that his body structure was of immense advantage to him: his height made him see farther than they did; his agility was an asset in reporting with a speed; and his long nose smelled news quicker than his colleagues’ with stunted noses.
When he died, all colleagues were down. At NTA, Gambo Abdullahi, a senior reporter said a vacuum had been created there. The very day Inuwa did not show up for evening newscast in Hausa emotions ran freely. That day was May 26. “We had to begin fresh arrangements for a newscaster for that evening”, he said. There are a couple of news translators hired by NTA Lafia – all good at the job – but Inuwa was considered exceptional because he combined this job with reporting, for print, and broadcast.
“We will forever miss him”, Gambo Abdullahi said.
Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura, himself, an ex-broadcaster who met Inuwa because of the late reporter’s vigour, said he was in Abuja for a visit when Inuwa died. On return, he drove straight to the family residence. His words to the parents and other tearful relatives who welcomed him with stories of how they know the governor too well on the pages of their late family member’s newspaper, sunk deep in listeners’’ hearts.
“He lived a good life. No one who had ever come close to Inuwa knew him for anything other than being good at his work, good at cultivating friendship; he was respectful and commanded respect. All of us who are grieving his departure are left with these facts in our minds. That is what has kept me upright; I would have broken down”, the governor said. He participated fully in the burial arrangements, and personally supervised Joseph Danjuma, a media aide of his who worked closely with the family for the final internment of the late reporter.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps made similar comments about the late reporter. The Commandant, Mr Nweze Emmanuel, in a condolence message signed by the command’s spokesman, Soji Alabi, said: “It is on record that Inuwa, while alive, discharged his duties with utmost humility, diligence, effectiveness and professionalism, and he will surely be missed by all.
“The entire Corps members here in Nasarawa State Command hereby express our heartfelt condolences to the family members as well as the Media Trust Group for the loss. While we take solace in the fact that God gives and He equally takes, we pray that the Almighty God will give the family the fortitude to bear the great loss”, the condolence message added.
The state police command spoke too. ASP Cornelius Ocholi, spokesman of the command, who relayed Commissioner Abayomi Akeremale’s condolence, tearfully told this reporter that the news of Inuwa’s death shocked authorities at the command, as if he was one of their staff.
“He was good in his profession. He was a friend of every police station; and was known by policemen. He sought confirmation of stories before he reported. We miss this reporter”, Ocholi said.
Workers in government establishments spoken to said they read Inuwa as if his reports were circulars for their promotion. “I kept a date with every Friday to read Aminiya, just because of Inuwa”, a staff of the state’s Ministry of Information said.