THISDAY’s Blessing Ibunge has emerged the winner of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) Prize for Niger Delta Region’s Oil and Gas Print Reporter of the Year at the 13th Bayelsa Media Awards (BMA), held in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.
Ibunge, who reports for THISDAY Newspaper in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, was among journalists recognised for outstanding reporting on the economy and oil and gas industry in the Niger Delta.
The award ceremony, which coincided with activities marking the 30th anniversary of Bayelsa State’s creation, attracted media practitioners from across the Niger Delta, including Rivers, Cross River, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Edo and Delta states.
The NCDMB-sponsored awards featured three categories, with each winner receiving a cash prize of N1 million and a brand-new laptop.
Other winners were Joseph Kunde of TVC Yenagoa, who clinched the NCDMB Prize for Niger Delta Region’s Report on Economy, and Ebitimi Zitimiyola of NTA Yenagoa, who won the NCDMB Prize for Niger Delta Region’s Oil and Gas Broadcast Reporter of the Year.
Speaking at the event, the NCDMB Executive Secretary, Felix Omatsola Ogbe, represented by the Manager, Government Relations, Teddy Bai, reaffirmed the board’s commitment to promoting excellence in journalism.
Ogbe, who also featured as a panelist, acknowledged the media’s contributions to the establishment, growth and visibility of the board, stressing its importance in communicating development initiatives, promoting accountability and shaping public discourse.
He said the board valued its longstanding partnership with the media community and recognised the role of credible journalism in advancing public understanding of developments in the oil and gas sector.
The NCDMB chief also commended the organisers of the Bayelsa Media Awards for sustaining a platform that celebrates professionalism and encourages healthy competition among journalists.
Chairman of the awards, Victor Binawari, said the initiative was established to recognise media professionals who devote their careers to promoting individuals, businesses and institutions but rarely receive similar recognition themselves.
“We started because we noticed that media professionals will do so well to promote people, promote politicians, promote businesses and don’t get the opportunity to be promoted,” he said.
Binawari expressed appreciation to the NCDMB for supporting the awards, describing the board as a dependable partner in efforts to encourage excellence in the media industry.
He said the organisers maintained strict and transparent judging procedures, with an adjudication committee comprising experienced professionals and academics assessing entries based on their quality rather than the identities of the journalists.
The committee’s approach, he added, had helped strengthen the credibility of the awards and encouraged greater participation from journalists across the Niger Delta.
In the keynote address, the Bayelsa State Government reiterated the importance of a professional media in promoting accountability and good governance.
Represented by the Commissioner for Youth Development, Alfred Nimizigha, the Secretary to the State Government said the media had contributed to public enlightenment through its coverage of government policies, development projects and security issues.
He urged journalists to sustain professionalism while strengthening their skills in digital journalism, data analysis, fact-checking and investigative reporting.
The 13th edition of the Bayelsa Media Awards further reinforced its growing regional profile, recognising journalists whose work contributes to public awareness and reporting on critical economic and industrial issues affecting the Niger Delta.
