By Our Correspondent

The Editorial Board of Verbatim News Magazine has announced the organization of its maiden edition of the Verbatim Annual Ethics and Integrity Awards and the official unveiling of VERBATIM 100 MOST OUTSTANDING INTEGRITY COMPLIANT MDAs.

The landmark event slated to take place on Tuesday 29th Septembet, 2026 at the Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja will attract the big and mighty in the society

The initiative, organised by Verbatim News Magazine in strategic partnership with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), is designed to recognise public institutions and their Chief Executives that have demonstrated strong commitment to ethics, integrity and institutional compliance.

The 100 institutions to be recognised are drawn from the 2025 Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS) of the ICPC. Verbatim’s initiative is supported by the Commission through technical guidance and validation of the EICS 2025 data underpinning the publication and recognition programme.

The event will also mark the public unveiling of VERBATIM 100, a new developmental journalism series conceived by Verbatim to identify, document and celebrate institutions and leaders contributing to improved governance and national development. The series is intended to go beyond conventional awards by providing sustained editorial attention to measurable institutional performance and leadership.

The Pillars of Integrity Awards will include institutional recognition for the selected MDAs and recognition of their Chief Executives for leadership in promoting the principles and practice of ethics and integrity in public service.

The programme is expected to attract senior government officials, heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies, members of the diplomatic and business communities, civil society leaders, media executives and other stakeholders in Nigeria’s governance and accountability space.

The Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Verbatim News Magazine, Tobs Agbaegbu, said the initiative reflects the magazine’s commitment to using credible journalism not only to scrutinise public institutions, but also to identify and celebrate positive examples of leadership and institutional excellence.

«“Integrity must be recognised, documented and encouraged. Through the Verbatim 100 series, we want to demonstrate that ethical leadership and institutional excellence deserve the same public attention that we routinely give to failure and misconduct,” Agbaegbu said.»

Verbatim News Magazine invites members of the media and the public to join the magazine on September 29, 2026, as it launches the Verbatim 100 series and honours the institutions and leaders being recognised as Pillars of Integrity.