Oluwadare Babarinsa, journalist and publisher, is the Chairman/Managing Director of Gaskia Media Limited. He shared his life story with TUNDE ADELEKE.
You were at Newswatch and later joined others to birth the TELL magazine with the slogan: ‘We tell the news, others watch it’. Can you recall what brought this about?
I was a member of the pioneering team of the Newswatch. Our leader was the late Dele Giwa and his other colleagues who were highly distinguished journalists in this country, then and now – Ray Ekpu, Dan Agbese and Yakubu Mohammed. They were high-flying journalists. Dan Agbese was the Editor of New Nigerian, Ray Ekpu was the Editorial Chairman of Concord Group of Newspapers, Yakubu Mohammed was the Editor of National Concord and Dele Giwa was the Editor of Sunday Concord.
They were famous. That was an era when journalists were celebrities. So, we believed they were good and we followed them. It was a great experience working with Newswatch. You cannot get a better environment to practice journalism. Journalists were in charge; we were not beholden to any moneybags. We were involved and we could practise journalism as it should be practised and Newswatch was a trailblazer. It was an outstanding institution that served our country, Nigeria and served our profession.
At what point did you consider leaving?
After Dele Giwa was killed in 1986, the impact was serious. We were trying to be courageous about it, but the impact was serious on our bosses and on those of us l call the infantrymen, it fundamentally affected us. Nevertheless, Newswatch tried to go on as the best news magazine Nigeria has ever seen. And if you remember, despite the devastation we suffered in the Newswatch in 1986, the magazine was again proscribed in 1987 by the military government. So, we were destabilised and part of the impact was that some of us felt we could practise journalism somewhere else. So, we started the idea of our own magazine; myself, Dele Omotunde, OnomeOsifo-Whiskey, Kola Ilori and NosaIgiebor. We started talking, then we decided to start the TELL magazine.
How did you come about the name?
The name ‘TELL’ was suggested by OnomeOsifo-Whiskey and after a lot of meetings, we all agreed we would use the name. But the slogan ‘Others watch the news, we tell it’ was brought about by one of our colleagues, Austen Oghuma, a staff member. We went to Promoserve to create a marketing plan for our magazine. Promoserve was well known as an outstanding advertising agency under the leadership of Mr Kehinde Adeosun, a proper advertising guru at that time. So, there were a lot of talks about TELL. Oghuma, one of our old colleagues in Newswatch that was brought in to be part of the pioneering team of TELL, went to interact with some of the other people in Newswatch and one of them challenged him. ‘You call your magazine TELL, what is TELL? It sounds like a gossip magazine, is that what you want to be telling?’ Then, Oghuma replied, ‘Well, we will be telling the news while you watch it.’ So, he came to tell us the story and we relayed it to Mr Adeosun. He said ‘That’s a great one, others watch the news, we tell it.’ And it became the slogan of our magazine.
You are the chairman of GaskiaMedia.There are speculations that you named it a Hausa word to please your sponsors from that part of the country. How would you react to that?
Yes, Gaskia is a Hausa word. Gaskia has a very high-level universal aspiration; it means truth. It is not a Fulani word, it is one of the best-used words in Africa, and, therefore, it carries a deep philosophical meaning. It means the best, it also means the truth.
It is an irony in this country that Hausa has a large cultural influence, but politically and socially, they have been subsumed by the Fulani and, therefore, many people don’t understand the difference between Hausa and Fulani. Sometimes, they mistake Hausa words for Fulani words. How many Fulani words do we know? The Fulani are the only ones that speak their language – Fulfulde. I have never met a non-Fulani man who speaks Fulfulde. All Fulani can speak Hausa, but I don’t think any Hausa man can speak Fulfulde and I haven’t seen a Yoruba man who speaks Fulfulde.
So, the meaning of Gaskia is the truth or the best, but we don’t spell it like it is spelt in Hausa so that people can pronounce it properly. The company is sponsored and fully owned by the Babarinsa family. In this journey, God is our godfather and we don’t need any other godfather.
The catch is now understandable, but what about the aspiration behind it?
Because we have universal aspirations, that is one reason why we are Gaskia. Africans should learn to brand their products in an African language. It is not mandatory that we should brand our newspapers or magazines in English, Latin or German names. The fact that we write in English does not mean we should brand our products in English. Forbes is a name, what is the meaning of Forbes? What is the meaning of Aljazeera? Don’t they have the right to also broadcast in English?
You don’t need to know the meaning of a word before you can pronounce it, once the sound is good. And when you hear the name Gaskia, the sound is good. The only shareholders of Gaskia, for now, are Dare Babarinsa and his family.
My mother used to trade in the North and she used to say when the Hausa man tells you gaskia, it means that is the best you can have after good bargaining. He can’t go beyond that.
So, when people ask why the Hausa word, I ask what the big deal is. In Nigeria, people give their magazines German names, Latin names, and English names; what is wrong in giving my publication a Hausa name? How does that affect how I write the story? If I’m writing about Ibadan, would I be writing it from Hausa’s point of view? Nigerians need to open their minds. If you can buy Dangote Cement, it’s a product. I also founded Lekeleke, a tyre company. The president of Michelin came to Nigeria and asked for the meaning. He said ‘I am just curious, what’s the meaning of Lekeleke?
When we started our sociocultural group, they said we should call ourselves ‘collective.’ Then we called ourselves IdileOodua. That resonates better with our people.
So, Gaskia is an African name that has a philosophical meaning. We have to look for a name so that the tonality will not affect the pronunciation. So, when you see Gaskia, even though you’re from Ghana or Gambia, you’re not likely to have a problem pronouncing it correctly. When I went to Togo, it was pronounced correctly.
How was your experience growing up?
Very exciting; it was a very exciting period. My father was a bricklayer, who later developed himself to become what people call a contractor these days. He was building houses, churches and other things. He also had a quarry, selling stones. My mother was a trader. Originally, she was dealing in textiles, gold and other jewellery. But later on, when that one collapsed, she started selling foodstuffs like rice, beans, dry fish, dry meat and other things. She was bringing those things from the North.
Growing up was nice in Okemesi-Ekiti. I had the luck of knowing my maternal and paternal grandmothers, but I didn’t know any of my grandfathers. It was good growing up in Okemesi. My father, by Okemesi standard, was a local champion.
What about your education?
I went to Anglican Grammar School, Ile-Ife, from 1969 to 1973. After that, I was a teacher briefly at Ire-Ekiti and Ikole-Ekiti before I gained admission to the University of Ife in 1976. I was there for two years before crossing over to the University of Lagos to study Mass Communication. Since 1981 after my graduation, and after I finished my NYSC on July 15, 1982, I have been into journalism.
Can you briefly take us through your career history?
First, I have been lucky to have outstanding people as my editors. I was lucky to serve with NYSC. I served in the NYSC Secretariat, Abeokuta and I was appointed NYSC public relations officer. I believe I was the only youth corper in Ogun State who had access to an official car; so, I had a special experience which other corps members did not have; an official car, office and a secretary, all the paraphernalia of an office. I was also the editor of Corps Torch, a regular magazine of NYSC. My boss was Ogunsanwo (now late). Then, after my NYSC, I was employed by Drum magazine in 1982; my editor was Olasehinde Lawson and our Editorial Director was Olu Adetule. Then, in November, 1982, my friend, the late Wale Oladepo and I joined the Concord Group of Newspapers. Our editor was Yakubu Mohammed and our news editor was Dayo Onibile. These are very thorough journalists, outstanding men. In 1983, around February, I was posted to Akure as chief correspondent. It was in Akure that I covered the election crisis of 1983.
When Newswatch was starting in 1985, I became one of the pioneer reporters; I was employed as a staff writer in November, 1984, the magazine came out in February, 1985. By 1986, I was promoted senior staff writer; in 1987, I was promoted to the position of Assistant Editor; in 1988, I was promoted to Associate Editor. Then, in 1990, we started TELL and I became the Executive Director and I remained in that position for 15 years until I retired in 2007.
I went to Ekiti to run for governor on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy. When I failed in that, I came back to journalism; I was Editor-in-Chief/Managing Director of The Westerner. After that, I started Gaskia.
How did you meet your wife?
I have been married twice. So, I lost my first wife in 1999 and married my current wife in 2001. We met at a wedding of one of our cousins. We have been on the journey since then. Her name is Modupe; she is from Edo State.
What pranks were you involved in as a youth?
There was nothing spectacular. We tried to do what other people were doing.
Like what?
When I was at the University of Ife, my friend, Segun Adeleke and I started a magazine called Torch which ran for some years. Then, at the University of Lagos, my friend, Ajakaye and I started a magazine called ‘Koboko’ (horsewhip). Then, I was involved in politics at UNILAG and later emerged as National President of Ondo State Students Union for the whole country. That was how I got to know Papa Ajasin and other leaders of Ondo State of that era. In those days, governors were always ready to welcome the president.
What would you consider your memorable events?
I have had many memorable events, both good and not-so-good. Nobody remembers when he was born. So, there are things you remember and continue to wonder about. Well, career wise, the most shocking for me was the killing of Dele Giwa. Nothing could have prepared us for it. It was terrifying; it was a nightmarish experience for me. I would call it unforgettable. I was also in Akure and saw death face to face on August 16, 1983 when Agbayewa, Fagbamigbe, Agunbiade and the rest of them were killed. Those were terrifying days. Some of them are recounted in my book ‘One day and a Story.’
What about outside the country?
In 1986, I went to Equatorial Guinea, a country that has no newspaper at all, nobody had ever seen newspapers in that country as of that time, apart from those bringing it from outside, and no television station. But they had a radio station. So, I didn’t understand, I was young. I did not understand the enormity of what I was doing. Fortunately, when I got to the country, I visited the Nigerian Embassy and met the ambassador, Admiral Porbeni. He was very kind to me. So, when I was to leave the country after my assignment, at the airport heading back to Nigeria, I was arrested for spying. But it was my lucky day. Among the passengers travelling to Lagos was Ambassador Porbeni. I didn’t follow them gently, I resisted. I said ‘You can’t arrest me; I am going back to my country.’ And in that country, they’re not used to people resisting arrest and shouting at them. But I shouted at them and people were attracted.
Then, Porbeni came and asked what the problem was. I explained to him. He called their boss and said ‘You can’t arrest him; he is my guest.’
The airport had no electricity, so, if the plane didn’t leave on time, then we were not traveling again. So, they detained the plane. Then, Porbeni said he was not traveling again. And a Nigerian ambassador anywhere on the African continent is a big man, you cannot toy with the Nigerian ambassador. So, they had to release me to him finally. I have not been to the country since then.
What is your favourite food?
As an Ekiti man, what do you expect? My wife gives me pounded yam every Saturday.
What genre of music is your choice?
Musically, I am omnivorous. There are three musicians I regard as being outstanding: I like King Sunny Ade; I like Ebenezer Obey and I like a Jamaican called Bob Marley. If I am to pick the fourth, I will pick Fela. Those are my favourite musicians.
How do you relax?
I read, write and play table tennis. Reading is part of my relaxation, but fortunately, it is part of my work. Table tennis is the only sport I play; I am not into any other sports.
READ ALSO FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
