All the rain did not stop us at the Centre for Research, Information Management and Media Development (CRIMMD), Nigeria’s history museum on Saturday as we celebrated The Guardian at 40 with an exhibition and a brief history of how the journey.
The Director General, Dr. Raphael James started with a brief story, looking back to 1977 when Dr. Stanley Macebuh caught the attention of Dr. Patrick Dele Cole, the then Managing Director of the Daily Times, who encouraged his return to Nigeria to enhance the then nationally predominant Daily Times of Nigeria. Macebuh left City College of New York as an Assistant Professor of English as well as an Associate Professor of English at Columbia University, New York, United States and returned to Nigeria as he was invited to Daily Times newspapers to be the Editorial Adviser and Chairman of the Editorial Board. He became the first Nigerian to have been designated Chairman, Editorial Board of a print media industry. He brought to the position his intellectual prowess, and his return attracted people such as Dele Giwa to come back to Nigeria too.
At the commencement of the Second Republic in 1979, Daily Times came under the control of the ruling party, the National Party of Nigeria (NPN). Editorial decisions were sanctioned by the party before they could be carried out. On one occasion, Macebuh had assembled his team of reporters to go with him to interview President Shehu Shagari in 1979. Macebuh, Dele Giwa and Dr. (Mrs.) Doyin Abiola (then Miss Aboaba) were on that team. Macebuh was to handle the political questions, Doyin the family life angle, and Giwa was to take charge of his profile. The NPN government felt that Giwa was going to ask questions that might embarrass the President and his name was removed. In fact Giwa and Doyin were replaced with Rufai Ibrahim and Ronke Akinsete.
Macebuh, a professional to the core, could not work under such conditions. The last incident that convinced him that his Daily Times days were over was the day he stumbled by accident into Alhaji Umaru Dikko’s office to pick a forgotten item, and he met Dikko rewriting with a red biro an editorial, which Macebuh had just passed for publication. He convinced himself that the time had come to move ahead and set a paper that would be free of interference and would be able to deliver to the public the truth, and nothing but the truth. In 1981, Macebuh left Daily Times to co-found what he had intended from day one to be not just a great liberal newspaper but a flagship of Nigerian journalism; to meet the taste of the time.
He discussed his dream newspaper with some friends, including Dele Cole, who later introduced him to Alex Ibru, a member of the influential Ibru family who was willing and prepared to finance the dream. That was how The Guardian was born and delivered at the premises of the organisation at Rutam House, along the Oshodi-Apapa Road.
Macebuh visited places across the nation gathering materials and bringing together the best of hands to come and work with him. He spent time in his private library, studying documents and styles of how to present a solid paper. As the founding Managing Director, he had a formidable team of editors including Femi Kusa, Lade Bonuola, Andy Akporugo, Herbert Ekwe-Ekwe, Edwin Madunagu, Ted Iwere, Nduka Irabor, Amma Ogan, Ashikiwe Adione-Egom and Greg Obong-Oshotse. Pius Ayan, who also retired from the Daily Times few days after Macebuh, was invited to join in The Guardian dream. He also brought together the best brains we had in the land to be part of his dream. These include acclaimed scholars, writers and thinkers, including Prof. Chinweizu, Prof. Femi Osofisan, Prof. Onwuchekwa Jemie, Dr. Yemi Ogunbiyi, Prof. Godini Darah and Eddie Iroh. The Guardian was conceived on a visionary scale of a true flagship of journalism. Its driving motto was anchored on a priceless dictum controversially attributed to the founder of the Sokoto caliphate – Shehu Uthman Dan Fodio.
Macebuh became The Guardian‘s first Executive Editor and Editor-in-Chief; the first Chairman of its Editorial Board, and first Managing Director, starting from February 1983, when the newspaper took off first as a weekly, and later daily. His editorial team worked tirelessly to produce the first edition of The Guardian. From then, the paper grew from strength to strength and became the most authoritative newspaper in Nigeria. Macebuh rotationally deployed members of the Editorial Board, who visited the production department in the middle of the night, just to make sure that the paper came out error-free. After some time, he introduced an Ombudsman, who was in charge of monitoring the paper and updated on quality-control standard. He also introduced the “Simply Mister” title under which all Nigerians, except four, were to be stripped of honorific when mentioned in The Guardian. Every one was addressed as Mr. This or Mrs. That.
In the early years of the paper, an interview section was introduced that was anchored by Ogunbiyi. It handled interviews with world leaders; and for a while, they both lasted in The Guardian. Ogunbiyi and his team member, the Publisher, interviewed about 10 world leaders, including: Prime Minister Shimon Peres of Israel, Libya’s Col. Mamman Gaddaffi, Thomas Sankara, Julius Nyerere, Kenneth Kaunda and Robert Mugabe. The Guardian launched other publications – financial, evening, lifestyle and weekly news magazine – under his direction and also introduced The Guardian Literary Series, which ended up being published every Saturday for two and half years; and the Guardian Books Limited, which was headed by Ogunbiyi.
Nothing good last for ever. Not long after, challenges emerged in The Guardian, mostly between the financier, Ibru and the Managing Director, Macebuh. But The Guardian went on to survive and has last lasted and still standing.
James also spoke about some challenges faced by The Guardian in the last 40 years. He recalled that, in just about a year after taking off, during the administration of General Muhammadu Buhari, reporters Tunde Thompson and Nduka Irabor were both sent to jail in 1984 under Decree No. 4 of 1984, which suppressed journalistic freedom.
Also in the 1980s. there was the arrest and detention in Yola prison of Mr. Etim Etim, the finance reporter with The Guardian group of newspapers. No reason was given for his detention.
In 1988, The New York Times described The Guardian as “Nigeria’s Most Respected Newspaper”
On 26th August 1989, The Guardian published a long letter by human-rights activist, Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti, Open Letter to President Babangida, in which he criticised what he saw as increasing government suppression of free expression of ideas. The Guardian was hit a again by the powers that be.
On 29th May 1991, The Guardian faced a 10-day forced closure of its premises, when the military governor of Lagos State, Raji Rasaki ordered the sealing up of the building for a story published in the Guardian Express on the death of two students during a riot at the Yaba College of Technology. The story, described by the police as false, had fingered the police for the shooting of the students. The enforcement team was led by George Ola Ogar, Deputy Superintendent of Police.
On 2th February 1996, the Publisher, Ibru escaped an assassination attempt during the military regime of General Sani Abacha. His car was fired upon and Ibru was hit. He was rushed to the hospital with one of his eyes dangling from its socket.
The exhibition, which commemorated The Guardian at 40, paraded several items, including:
1. Photos of some key players in the last 40 years
2. Original copy of the first edition
3. Original copy of the 40th anniversary edition number
4. Old copies of The African Guardian magazine
5. Old Copies of The Guardian Express
6. Old cartoons from The Guardian
7. Old copies of Life magazine
8. Old Copies of The Advertiser
9. Some Breaking News editions from the last 40 years.
In the last 40 years, The Guardian should have published a total 14, 600 editions at a publication a day, we have quite a number of that collection.
The African Guardian magazine was first published in 16th January 1986, we have from the first edition up till August 1994.
The Advertiser, a free monthly advertising magazine, started at probably 2006.
The Guardian Life magazine, a free fashion copy magazine inserted in The Guardian newspapers, started at about 2005 and today we have over 1,000 editions.
The Guardian was fully represented by one of its able staff, Mr. Gregory Austin Nwakunor, and the event was well attended.
We also wish to appreciate the astuteness of the current Publisher, Lady Maiden Alex Ibru. Also worth commending is the MD/Editor-in-Chief, Mr Martin Oloja; the Chairman Editorial Board, Prof. Wale Omole; and all the staff for keeping the flag flying higher.
Happy 40th Anniversary to The Guardian newspapers.
Dr. James is a renowned media researcher, information manager, author, publisher, curator, philatelist, numismatist, philanthropist and biographer
