Ogunshola: I never interfered in PUNCH’s editorial content

 The former chairman of Punch Nigeria Limited, Chief Ajibola Ogunsola, on Tuesday, attributed his success at the newspaper to his firm resolve to detach himself from its editorial contents.

He spoke during the 27th edition of the Centre for Values in Leadership’s Leadership Tribute Colloquium held in his honour.

The event was in honour of the Ogunshola’s contributions to the growth of the Nigerian media industry. The team of the colloquium was: The Media as the Fourth Estate of the Realm.

Panelists included the Chairman, Punch Nigeria Limited, Mr. Wale Aboderin; the Publisher, Manufacturing Today Newspaper, Mr. Stanley Egbochuku; the General Manager, Vanguard Media Limited, Mr. Gbenga Adefaye and the former Managing Director, Concord Newspapers, Dr. Doyin Abiola.

Ogunshola, who spoke after he was presented with a plaque of honour, said the PUNCH Newspapers excelled professionally because he distanced himself from its editorial contents and “allowed professionals to do their jobs.”

The celebrant recalled three instances when the newspaper carried reports that affected his close friends, including the ex-governor of Ogun State, Chief Segun Osoba, when he was chairman. As painful as he felt, he said he could not intervene to stop the reports, as he had chosen not to dictate to the editors on professional issues.

He said, “To members of the general public, the belief was that the chairman of the newspaper reads the stories before printing. Hence, he should be held responsible for any story against them. Unknown to them, I read Punch Newspapers in the morning like other readers without any prior knowledge of the stories that were published.”

Since he was not involved in the editorial process, according to Ogunsola, he also refrained from apologising on behalf of the newspaper. He stressed that he never tendered any personal apology to any aggrieved party as that would imply taking personal responsibility for the contents of the newspapers.

“I took a firm decision not to personally apologise for stories carried by The PUNCH. My advice to complainants was to get their media officers to write the company. For those whose voices were not very strong, I asked them to write the company and copied me,” he said.

He, however, said that he insisted on high ethical practice at all cadres of the editorial section, noting that correspondents and their bosses were fired on several occasions for carrying false and unethical reports.

He also pointed out proper financial management as another factor that assisted him to build an enduring institution during his time.

He said, “I retained a firm handle on the company. One of the first things I did was insisting that all money belonging to the company be paid into the company’s account after which cheques were issued for expenses incurred.

“I was concerned in promoting high quality style in terms of and language style, my policy of non-interference in the editorial contents suited journalists. It also suited me well because I did not have to devote time to aspect.”