Oladejo Ezekiel Oludele is an executive member of the Freelance and Independent Broadcasters Association of Nigeria (FIBAN) vying for the position of National President of the association. He speaks to OMOTUNDE TAIWO on the relevance of freelance journalism and production to the Nigerian entertainment and information society, among other issues.
What is fiban and its activities?
FIBAN is a professional body of freelance and independent broadcasters on radio and television across Nigeria. Our role cannot be over emphasised as we are media personalities who work without salaried income. We create programmes, and seek sponsorship for such on various platforms, while keeping our audience entertained at all times.
Tell us a bit about your achievements in FIBAN and producer/presenter?
I’m a foundation member of the association which we formed in the year 2002 through a developed innovation of the Late Gbenga Adeboye.
We came together and since then I’ve been relevant at the national level; I was the state secretary for 10 years (1993-2003) and at the national level, I served as an assistant secretary of FIBAN, later became the National secretary and later the only national counsellor of the Association. In 2014, I became the National treasurer till date.
Do you feel that your members can survive without salaries without compromising the ethics of the profession?
Yes we can! We are more comfortable than most salary earners but, it depends. You know if one’s effort is blessed by God, what a salary earner is expecting at the end of the month can be earned by a freelance broadcaster in a day. The hope of survival for a freelance broadcaster is very sure.
About compromise, that’s not the situation; there are guiding laws that’s why we have NBC. You follow the codes of NBC to perform your duty so that the belief of ‘he who pays the piper dictates the tune’ does not arise.
You are vying for the post of National President, what do you seek to change?
If you follow my antecedents, in terms of experience, I’m most qualified. Now, as a performing outgoing executive member, we started some projects, which I would want to accomplish. According to a verse of the National anthem, “The labour of our hero’s past shall never be in vain.
There are so many things I’m going to change; I’ve noticed that there are influences of God-fatherism and any association or union that is aspiring to be great should trash out such.
I want to deal with every potential on merit and encourage selfless service, working without much gain in return. Also, some presenters are not developing themselves, I want to make sure members are sent to training periodically, those are part of the things I want to change.
and then