David Hundeyin is a Nigerian journalist and author known for his investigative reporting. He studied mass communications at Igbinedion University before pursuing a degree in creative writing at the University of Hull, where he graduated in 2011.
Hundeyin has worked in various jobs, including a contract position at KPMG, before returning to Nigeria in 2013.
His reporting style, which sometimes involves open-sourced investigations, has earned him both awards and criticism.He is a supporter of Peter Obi, who ran against Tinubu in the 2023 presidential race. Here are important things we do not know about David Hundeyin:
1. Hundeyin’s article about the work conditions of Indian expatriate workers at Globacom led to the workers receiving their owed pay, and he received a letter of appreciation from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
2. He also wrote an investigative report on potential human rights violations in a proposed infectious diseases bill in Nigeria’s House of Representatives during the Covid-19 lockdown, which won him a People Journalism Prize for Africa.
3. Hundeyin faced backlash from Nigerian politician Godswill Akpabio after writing about the rape and death of a woman, alleging that the suspect used a hotel owned by Akpabio’s wife. Akpabio demanded a retraction and threatened a lawsuit.
4. In 2021, Hundeyin started the newsletter West Africa Weekly on the Substack platform, thanks to a grant from Substack Local. He cited the creative and editorial freedom it provided.
5. Hundeyin published investigative articles on Nigerian presidential candidate Bola Tinubu, tech start-up Flutterwave, and the BBC’s West Africa operations, sparking intense social media conversations.
6. David’s Twitter account was locked in April 2023 for violating Twitter’s policy on personal identifying information after he published Tinubu’s Guinean passport.
7. Hundeyin was announced as The Distinguished James Currey Fellow for 2023 at the University of Cambridge’s Centre of African Studies but was later dismissed due to allegations of misconduct during his book launch at Oxford University. He accused Oxford professor Miles Larmer and Kaduna state Governor Nasir el-Rufai of being behind the accusations and development.
8. He has a website at davidhundeyin.com.
9. Hundeyin’s reporting has been praised by writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who described him as a “brilliant” investigative journalist.
10 . Hundeyin has faced cyberattacks and website throttling after publishing certain reports.
Some other things we did not know about David Hundeyin :
Hundeyin left Nigeria in 2020 after participating in the #EndSARS protest and receiving multiple threats. He was granted asylum and refugee status in Ghana in 2022. He has been involved in intense social media conversations with the subjects of his articles or their supporters. Hundeyin has even been accused of making misogynistic and sexist comments during an event, leading to his dismissal from Cambridge. He has been very vocal about issues such as human rights violations, corruption, and political controversies in Nigeria.
Some of his awards:
- He won the Royal Commonwealth Society’s “Write Around The World” 3rd Prize in the Class B category in 2006.
- Hundeyin received the People Journalism Prize for Africa in 2020.
- He was named the GRC & Anti-Financial Crime Reporter of the Year in 2021.
- Hundeyin was awarded the James Currey Fellowship for 2023.