The Whistler Publisher, James Ume, Bags Double Awards, Unveils N300m Scholarship

The publisher of The Whistler online newspaper, Chief James Ume, has bagged the Gani Fawehinmi Impact and Integrity Awards (GFIIA), as well as God’s Mission Ambassadors Award.

The GFIIA was conferred on him by the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) Resource Center during the 6th GFIIA and Lecture held in Lagos on Sunday.

The God’s Mission Ambassadors Award was by the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria (PCN), Ketu Parish, Lagos, during its Silver Jubilee.

The GFIIA is instituted in honour of the late human rights activist and legal luminary, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN, to reward acts of integrity, accountability, and whistleblowing to deserving Nigerians.

The HEDA on the award to Ume, who is the chairman and founder of Unubiko Foundation said: “Ume has made a mark, quietly, in ensuring that others find comfort and convenience and overcome the vicissitude of life.

“He has touched the lives of the less privileged without making noise about it and has perfected the act of giving to become one of the shining and inspirational lights in humanitarian spaces in Nigeria. Hence, he is well deserving of the award.”

On their part, the PCN in bestowing the award on Ume, praised his philanthropic gestures, noting that the conferment was, “in appreciation and recognition of your invaluable work towards the growth of the parish and The Church Universal.”

Speaking on both awards, Ume said: “These awards stand for so many things to me. One of which is a call for service.

“It also shows that no matter the little things you do for humanity, people are watching, and they are recognising the things you are doing.

“It also means that you must monitor every one of your activities, and everything you are doing, because people are seeing it, and they are observing you and taking records.

“It, therefore, also means that we just have to keep working harder. For me, serving the people is what gives me ultimate satisfaction, and that’s what I believe in.”

On what to expect from the Foundation, moving forward, he said, “We are very grateful for the recognition that is coming. And I can tell you, we didn’t know how all these awards came about.

“For us, it’s just a beautiful thing. And for the Unubiko Foundation, we are not stopping here. We have had many people support us in many ways, with the work we are doing.

“This December, we are handing over a brand new secondary school that we built to the community and the government on December 26, and we will also be handing over N300 million for scholarships to Abia State students.

“So we are not stopping. We will keep uplifting humanity and keep hoping that we will get support from our friends and associates who help us in the works that we are doing.”