The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) has honoured the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Adeola Oluwatosin Ajayi, with its “Man of the Year” award for strengthening collaboration between security agencies and the media.
The award was presented following the NUJ’s 2-day National Security Summit held in Abuja with the theme, “Media and Security Agencies as Partners in Nation Building.”
The summit, which ran from June 18 to 19, attracted media executives, journalists, security chiefs, policymakers, academics, civil society organisations and development partners.
NUJ said the honour was “an affirmation that partnership, openness and mutual respect between the media and security institutions are vital to protecting lives, preserving democratic space and advancing nation-building.”
While presenting the award, the union said it recognised “a leadership approach that values engagement, transparency and partnership”.
Under Ajayi’s leadership, the DSS has pursued regular interaction with media stakeholders, creating channels that reduce suspicion, curb misinformation and foster cooperative solutions to security challenges.
Speaking at the summit, NUJ National President, Comrade Alhassan Yahaya Abdullahi, described the event as timely, especially amid challenges including terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, cybercrime, violent extremism, separatist agitations and hybrid threats.
“National security is a shared responsibility requiring ethical, accurate journalism and coordinated action across institutions,” he said.
The Minister of Information, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, who chaired the event, commended both the media and security agencies while reaffirming the Federal Government’s commitment to intelligence-driven operations, inter-agency collaboration, technology modernisation and community-based responses.
Speakers at the summit, including Prof Okey Ikechukwu and IPI Nigeria President, Musikilu Mojeed, stressed that strategic communication and press freedom are mutually reinforcing.
The President of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Aisha Ibrahim, called for increased participation of women in peacebuilding efforts.
According to a communiqué from the summit drafted by Shu’aibu Usman Leman, Abdulrazak Bello Kaura and Ayuku Pwaspo, and signed by NUJ President Abdullahi, the summit’s recommendations included institutionalising structured dialogue between media and security agencies, ensuring proactive and transparent communication from security services, strengthening fact-checking and ethical standards in journalism, conducting joint training for journalists and security communicators and increasing funding for education, youth empowerment, state media and modern security technology.
