Samuel Omofala, a student of the University of Ibadan, has won the ultimate prize in the 7th edition of the annual ‘Fisayo Soyombo inter-university essay competition organised by the Union of Campus Journalists (UCJ), University of Ibadan.

Omofala, a second year Law student, stood out from amongst 113 applicants who submitted entries this year. The essays were first pruned down to seven by Soyombo himself, before Joseph Adeiye, FIJ’s news and features editor, and Daniel Ojukwu, a senior reporter at FIJ, selected the winning entries.

Samuel Omofala

Kelechi Nwagwughiagwu, a student of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), and Yusuf Abubakar Ado from Bayero University, emerged first runner-up and second runner-up respectively.

Kelechi Nwagwughiagwu(UNILAG), First-Runner Up

Omofala received a N350,000 prize while Nwagwughiagwu and Ado received N250,000 and N200,000 respectively.

Adekunle Olajide, a student of the University of Ilorin, was highly commended for his entry

All four also have an offer of internship at FIJ.

Yusuf Abubakar Ado

Yusuf Abubakar Ado- second runner-up, represented by Caleb Okegbemi

READ ALSO: UNN Student Wins 6th ‘Fisayo Soyombo Inter-Varsity Essay Contest

Applicants wrote on the essay topic ‘Igbo vs Yoruba Post-2023 Election: Can Nigerians Ever Live as One?’, sharing approaches to peaceful coexistence among Nigeria’s diverse ethic groups.

Speaking on his victory, Omofala, a campus journalist himself, expressed gratitude to the organisers of the event.

“Victory to me is people seeing merit in my argument,” he said. “It’s not only about the ‘writing proficiency’ but also as a conscientious person, seeing my conscience justified.”

The essay competition, now in its 7th edition, was originally an initiative of Soyombo when he served as the 20th executive president of UCJ UI. He subsequently took personal financial responsibility for the competition after seeing it hold only once in the next seven years after he exited the UCJ office.

Omofala’s victory is a continuation of the domination of law students in the contest over the years.

Kunle Adebajo, a former Law student of UI now a prominent journalist, won the second edition of the award in 2016. Habeebulah Asudemade, another Law student from UI, won the 4th edition in 2020, while Chibuzor Victor Obiorah, a Law student of the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), won the 6th edition in 2024.

Timileyin Akinmoyeje, another UI student of Physiology, won the 5th edition of the award in 2023 and is currently undergoing his national youth service at FIJ after completing his internship at FIJ.
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