By Hope Gift, JKNewsMedia Reporter
THE NIGERIAN media community will gather in Lagos this week to honour the memory of Evelyn Eseoghene Osagie, Assistant Editor, Arts at The Nation newspaper, whose death has been described as a painful loss to journalism and culture reporting.
Her family, in collaboration with the Nigerian Media, Art & Culture Writers Association of Nigeria (ACWAN) and the Committee of Friends, announced that a two-day funeral programme will be held in her honour.
A Night of Tribute and Service of Songs will take place on Friday, 19 September, at the Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ), Ogba, Ikeja, beginning at 4,00pm.
The final rites will follow on Saturday, 20 September, at Atan Cemetery, Yaba, where interment is scheduled for 12.00noon.
Osagie died on Sunday, 17 August, after a brief illness. She was aged 49 going on 50.
Her passing is said to have created a significant void in the nation’s arts and culture reportage, where her voice and craft had stood out for over two decades.
Tributes have come from different quarters. President Bola Tinubu, in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described Osagie’s death as “sad and heartbreaking.”
The President praised her as one of The Nation’s “most talented, creative, and hardworking correspondents,” acknowledging her strong contributions to the coverage of arts and culture, alongside her advocacy for women’s issues.
He also drew attention to her poetic ability and her widespread influence in literary and cultural circles, noting her distinctive presence across several fields.
The Lagos State Government also conveyed its condolences through the Honourable Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso.
The statement remembered Osagie as a “reporter, poet and cultural advocate,” pointing to her passion for poetry that had previously drawn recognition from Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.
Omotoso recalled her reporting on civil rights and mental health, citing the 2015 feature on Indian Ayuba, a 13-year-old girl who showed extraordinary resilience in caring for her mentally challenged mother.
That story earned Osagie the Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA) Beatrice Bassey Prize for Female Reporter, bringing her into national prominence.
Her colleagues across newsrooms describe her as lovable, warm and approachable, with an enduring sense of commitment and an uncommon flair for creative expression.
They even made a lovely T-shirt to honour her memory.
Many recall her work as a unique blend of journalism and poetry, with reporting that not only informed but also touched the lives of readers and communities.
To further honour her memory, renowned poets Prof. Niyi Osundare, a USA-based Nigerian poet, dramatist, linguist and literary critic, and Dr. Nnimmo Bassey, a Nigerian architect, environmental activist, author, poet and Director of the Health of Mother Earth Foundation, have also shared their heartfelt tributes.
Evelyn Osagie’s death has left the Nigerian press without one of its most distinctive voices.
Her final farewell this week is expected to unite family, media colleagues, and cultural advocates in paying tribute to a journalist whose career combined talent with advocacy, and whose legacy is certain to remain within the country’s media and cultural history.
