President Muhammadu Buhari has felicitated with the board, management and staff of the Nigerian Tribune Newspapers on its 70th anniversary.
President Buhari, in a statement issued Friday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, extolled the founder, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, whose legacies in almost all sectors, he said, continued to speak of his patriotism, intellect and unusual wisdom.
Buhari said the Nigerian Tribune which was founded at the height of nationalist movement in 1949 played a crucial and historical role in Nigeria’s struggle for Independence.
He said the newspaper had sustained the same activism in the post-colonial era by holding leaders to account and “consistently” providing information that empowers citizens to demand accountability in all spheres of national life.
The president recalled what he called “the pungent and articulate editorials” as well as columns of the oldest Nigerian private newspaper, which serve as resource materials for individuals, businesses and academic institutions, and had shaped policy direction of successive governments.
Buhari, who said the conceptualisation of the media house with a ‘people-first’ philosophy continued to inspire its reach and influence, urged the board and management to consistently keep faith with the vision of the founding fathers.
He joined the Nigerian media generally in celebrating the milestone attained by the Nigerian Tribune.