In its 53 years of existence, The Nigeria Standard has been blessed with different categories of Reporters.
Over these number of years, this development became a tradition that anyone of us could not be boastful of. Simply put, the offsprings of a lion cannot be a lamb.
From the start, Ezekiel did not join the organisation as a Reporter. He was a staff of The Circulation Department December 12, 2001 before he was converted as Editorial staff on August 23, 2010 as Trainee Reporer.
Why did the conversion sail through so easily? He was an avid reader of newspapers as he devoured novels with a thick consistency as if he was doing it for the last.
There were three persons who inspired him on the road to becoming a Journalist.
Nde Jonathan Ishaku, an old horse and a critical voice in Journalism in Nigeria. He employed l and again gave him the go ahead for his conversion.
The other two are his older relations from Tuwan: Esly and Zachariah, both of the same parentage; Malam Bala Gotau.
Esly was a staff of the United Bank for Africa early at some point in his life. He would read novels as if he was attending to a pack of debit and credit notes.
Both Esly and Ezekiel would go to any length to get novels and read between themselves. It was a competition, or so it seems to finish one in a day.
Before his death, Zachariah was a staff of PRTV and had worked as Press Secretary to Senator Ibrahim Nasiru Mantu while he was Deputy Senate President.
Ezekiel Dontinna learnt on the job quickly as he wanted. His editors gave him almost any assignment that was available in Jos and outside.
One of the things that must have endeared him to them was his consistent ability to write his reports and go ahead to get the story behind the news.
Speaking mildly, that perhaps distinguished him among his peers, which it gave him an edge over some of them.
In the last few years of my tour of duty with the organisation, he was assigned to almost every available beat, and as we would say; he was mostly a Roving Reporter of some sort.
The steps taken was simple: There were few hands; and it was necessary to ensure that news coverage of the city was done without missing much of what happened in the city.
To say the least, he was always available to get his reports published. Each time any of his report remained unpublished, he made it look as if it was a crime.
It happens always with all Reporters in the newsroom: They usually get to their lowest points whenever their reports are not taken. They feel sour, sometimes to the point of affecting their schedules for the next day.
Reporters don't determine what stories are to be published, it is the business of editors. They always have their reasons for stepping down a particular story.
Even while he was ill, he did not want any assignment he was involved in to pass him by. It was apparent, if one saw him lately, one knew that he was fighting to stay strong and healthy.
To get certain stories which may not find space in The Nigeria Standard newspapers, he had a blog which published some of his stories. He was on a number of platforms which he shared those stories for others to read.
Over the years, he got involved in union politics of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), where he became, Financial Secretary later as Secretary of the Plateau Publishing Corporation (PPC) Chapel.
Fresh from NUJ politics, when the PPC Multi-Purpose Cooperative (PPC MCS) Society was electing officials to run its affairs, he got elected as Public Relations Officer from May 16, 2020 until May 31, 2024.
Lately, he became Coordinator, Middle Belt Journalists Forum for Plateau State.
In his 51 years walking the earth, he left behind a family that includes his wife, Grace; two boys and two girls; Sherji, Seyilnen, Nenjipinu and Bizum.
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