Profile – Michael Owhoko

Michael Evbrohonren Owhoko (born July 27) is a Nigerian journalist,[29] media, and public relations practitioner.[1] He is a former spokesman for Gaslink Nigeria Limited [25] and Communications representative for Addax Petroleum Nigeria Limited.[3][4] [25] Owhoko is an author with several books to his credit.[5][6][7][8][28

Early life

Owhoko was born in an oil city known as Emadadja in Udu Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria. He is the son of late Chief Owhoko Gheghe, a palm oil merchant and former Chief Judge of Udu Customary Court, Udu LGA, Delta State. In an effort to expose him to city life, his mother, late Mipheren Owhoko, sent him to live with her younger sister in Warri at the age of 7, where he grew up.

Owhoko took up employment in the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), in 1979, during which he was actively involved in union activities as a National Executive member of the PPMC Branch of the National Union of Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and later the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN). His quest for university education prompted him to resign in 1984 to actualize his dreams.

Education

Owhoko completed his primary and secondary education in Warri before proceeding to the University of Ilorin, Nigeria, where he received a B.Sc. in Political Science in 1987. After gaining work experience, he moved to the University of Lagos, where he obtained an M.Sc. in Political Science in 1999 and later obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Mass Communications in 2001. Thereafter, he enrolled for a Ph.D. program at Selinus University of Sciences and Literature. After a successful defense of his thesis, Owhoko was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) in Political Science.[25]

Owhoko also holds professional training certificates in Public Relations and Corporate Communications from the Institute of Leadership and Management through EuroMaTech in the United Kingdom and Dubai. Besides, he attended public relations and press management training programs organized by ReCh Management Centre, London. At different times, Owhoko acquired Media and Communications training from the Lagos Business School and Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria, as well as training in Public Relations and Effective Communication organized by the Financial Institutions Training Centre and Phillip Consulting, respectively in 1992. Moreover, he holds a Mini-Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Supply Chain Management.[25]

Career

Owhoko’s career as a journalist took its root from a weekly newspaper, The Metropolitan, where he was recruited as a Staff Reporter in 1989. In 1991, he joined the then Nationwide Merchant Bank, serving in various departments before exiting in 1997 as Head, Administration. He later joined Financial Telegraph on the Energy Desk before proceeding to The Diet, and then the Daily Times of Nigeria as the Energy Editor of the Business Times, during which he ran an energy column, wrote energy-related editorials and contributed a series of stories and articles, which served as a source of research materials for the oil and gas industry.[25][26]

In 2001, Owhoko was invited by the Managing Director of Gaslink Nigeria Limited[3] to join the company as Head of the Public Relations Department. He worked at the management level and as the organization’s spokesman, responsible for media, community, public, and government relations matters. The company awarded him a certificate of merit in October 2002 for his outstanding contribution to the completion and commissioning of the Ikeja 1B Gas Distribution Project.[26][27]

Between 2004 and 2006, Owhoko joined Owel-Linkso Group[4] as Public Relations Manager and spokesman responsible for analyzing and articulating government, public, media, and community-related issues. In 2006, he joined Addax Petroleum Development Nigeria Limited as Communications Representative,[5] developing and editing some of the company’s literature to highlight the company’s operations, including the in-house magazine, Inside Addax. Furthermore, Owhoko represented the company at several other events, including the Public Relations Sub-Committee of the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) of the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industries (LCCI).

In 2000, Owhoko was appointed into the Council of the Nigerian Gas Association (NGA), an International Gas Union (IGU) affiliate, as Publicity Secretary in 2000. During his tenure, he initiated the publication of a bi-annual gas journal, the Nigerian Gas, and was the pioneer editor of the magazine.[27] Owhoko was appointed in 2018 and 2020 by the association to a three-person electoral committee to conduct the credible election of officers into the association’s council.[25][26]

In 1999, Owhoko was appointed and sponsored by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) as a delegate to the 7th Nigerian Economic Summit held in Abuja, where he actively participated in the plenary sessions of the Oil & Gas Sub-Committee. He has also been appointed to various committees in the media and oil and gas industry, including the industry committee for the organization of the then West Africa Offshore Conference, which provided industry support for hosting the conference. In 2008, Owhoko was appointed to the National Committee of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games (NOGIG), where he was elected 2nd Vice-Chairman 2010 to plan, organize, and drive the games with the international, indigenous, and servicing oil companies as participants. Owhoko was also a member of a three-person committee appointed in 2008 by the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to produce bye-laws for regulating Journalists’ Estate, a pioneer housing estate for journalists in Nigeria located at Arepo, Ogun State.[6]

Owhoko has written five books and is currently working on the sixth one, which is due to be published by early 2022. He had given a radio interview on 99.3 FM Lagos, where he talked on a wide range of oil and gas issues.

He is also a publisher for Media Issues, an online newspaper based in Lagos.[29]

Professional associations/clubs

Owhoko is a member of several professional associations and clubs, including the Ikoyi Club 1938, Rotary Club of Ikoyi, District 9110 Nigeria, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR),[7] Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Nigerian Gas Association (NGA),[8][27] and Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC), which honored him with a Merit Award for Outstanding Service in 2012.

Personal life

Owhoko is married to Emily Owhoko and is based in Lagos.[28]

Books and selected publications