By Nelson Manneh
Members of the National Journalism Award committee on Friday, 5th of July 2019, updated the media on the forthcoming National Journalism Award schedule to take place on the 12th of July 2019 in a local hotel in Brufut.
This is the 4th edition of the National Journalism Award with more than ten categories contested by different journalist and reporters in the Gambia,
The National Journalism Award served as a platform where journalists are given credits and application on their Journalism work within twelve months.
Hadijatou Jawara the Coordinator of the Gambia Press Union (GPU) National Award Committee said the Award is an annual event organized by the Gambia Press Union as the union is the umbrella body of journalists in the Gambia.
“The GPU first started giving Awards to Journalists in 2016, as part of the world press freedom day, the union came up with the award idea as it is in line with the GPU mandate to promote professionalism in Journalism in the Gambia,” she said.
She outlines that this year’s award will mark the fourth edition of its kind and it is going to be celebrated on the 12th of July 2019 in a local hotel in Brufut.
“This year we received a lot of entries, more than two hundred entries were received for twenty different categories and as at now thirteen categories have been shortlisted and there are other areas yet to be shortlisted but will be shortlisted,” she noted.
Musa Sise the Chairperson of the Award committee said the event surpasses the mandate of the Gambia Press Union, noting it encourages and promotes the professionalism.
He said this kind of award is necessary and encouraging, “It encourages because it inspires a lot of people, it inspires because there are lots of people who want to become journalists,” he said.
“The GPU in conjunction with the world press freedom day celebrated on the 3rd of May initiated the award four years ago to award journalists on their work in the last twelve months,” he said.
Mr. Sise said the media practitioners are called to come forward to show the best of their work in the last twelve months, bring it forward to prominent people identified by the award committee to scrutinize and see who has the best work.
He said the event is meant to see how best they can encourage people in the profession.
“The Journalists are not the best people but the profession is very noble and it depends on the people practicing it. If they make it the best, it becomes the best. If they make it the worst that is what it will be but that is not what people are hoping for,” he said.
He said a lot of works has been done in the past three months and next week will be the final where some men and women who have done so much in the past twelve months in the media fraternity will be honored.
