THIS year's edition of the Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA) has been scheduled to hold from December 9 to 11, 2011 in Akure, Ondo State. With the Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko as chief host, the event is dedicated to the memory of the founding father and pioneer chairman of NMMA, Late Dr. Ismail Babatunde Jose OFR.The late doyen of modern journalism in Nigeria, an indigene of Ikare-Akoko in Ondo State, was renowned as having bequeathed the NMMA to the Nigeria media in 1991 as one of his lasting legacies.Revealing this in Lagos yesterday, the Administrator of NMMA, Mr. Eniola Ashaolu also said that to carry along all stakeholders in the project, a publishers' forum has been introduced in the 2011 edition.According to him, a series of activities have been lined up to ensure that NMMA 2011 awards is a memorable one for both the host and the participants.On Friday, the Award Nominating Panel (ANP) submitted the NMMA 2011 entries screening report to the Board of Trustees (BOT) headed by Alhaji Alade Odunewu.NMMA 2011 was originally scheduled to hold in Abuja, FCT but was shelved for logistics reasons. The grand presentation of award ceremony, where the works of the best practitioners in 2010 will be celebrated will be held on Saturday, December 10.The ceremony is expected to be graced by NMMA's grand patron, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR, President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, State Governors, senior government officials, corporate titans, foreign diplomats and media icons, veterans and current practitioners.The NMMA Board of Trustees led by Alhaji Alade Odunewu, a veteran journalist, about 10 years ago approved that the NMMA be hosted across the six geo-political zones and the FCT of Nigeria to showcase media excellence across Nigeria and also to bring the essence of media service in national development to all parts of the nation. Since then, the event's hosting has been successfully rotated among the six-geopolitical zones of Nigeria and Abuja.Going down memory lane, he said NMMA was held in Lagos from 1992 to 2002. The event was flagged off in 1992 with the attendance of the then president of Nigeria and first Grand Patron of NMMA, General Ibrahim Babangida.The event was also held in Abuja in 2003 hosted by the then FCT Minister, Mallam El-Rufai; Port Harcourt (River State) in 2004 hosted by the then Governor Peter Odili; in Bauchi in 2005 hosted by the then Governor Adamu Muazu; Ilorin (Kwara State) in 2006 hosted by the then Governor Bukola Saraki; Osogbo (Osun State) in 2007 hosted by the then Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola; Kano (Kano State) in 2008 hosted by the then Governor Ibrahim Shekarau; Enugu (Enugu State) in 2009 hosted by Governor Sullivan Chime and Lagos (Lagos State) in 2010 at the New Expo Centre of Eko Hotel and Suites.According to the new General Administrator of NMMA, Mr. Eniola Ashaolu, Ondo State government has promised to treat all the invited guests, nominees and administrators to the unique hospitality of the Sunshine state.'The event will afford the media practitioners the opportunity to explore and discover the Sunshine State to the fullest and the dividends of democracy under Governor Mimiko. It promises to be grandly in all ramifications as the grand attractions across the state would be under the spotlight of local and international media plus all the visiting guests of NMMA during and after the event,' he stated.The award, which started with just 10 categories at inception, has now grown to about 50 categories with most reputable corporate bodies identifying with the promotion of excellence performance in the media landscape.Last year, First Bank of Nigeria threw its weight behind NMMA with an endowment of Business Publication of the Year, an award which will be won for the first time this year.
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