''The Daily Times'' is a newspaper with headquarters in
Lagos
Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...
.
At its peak, in the 1970s, it was one of the most successful locally owned businesses in Africa.
[
The paper went into decline after it was purchased by the government in 1975. What was left was sold to a private investor in 2004. Folio Communications Limited officially assumed the ownership of the Daily Times of Nigeria Plc on September 3, 2004, after a colorful handover ceremony that was televised. The company was not and is still not a consortium. It is a private limited-liability company.
The printing of the flagship title ''The Daily Times'' resumed after the assumption of ownership in earnest from 2006 until 2009, partially to satisfy the embedded requirements contingent upon the Enterprise Sale Deed while company turnaround and restructuring continued.
Although the flagship ''Daily Times'' returned to the streets in December 2014, further efforts have been made towards the return of the other viable titles, especially the ''Sunday Times'', the ''Weekend Times'' and the ''Lagos Weekend'', to the streets.
]
Early years
The Nigerian Printing and Publishing Company, publishers of the ''Daily Times'' was incorporated on 6 June 1925 by Richard Barrow, Adeyemo Alakija
Oloye Sir Adeyemo Alakija, (25 May 1884 – 10 May 1952) was a Nigerian lawyer, politician and businessman. He served as a member of the Nigerian legislative council for nine years starting in 1933. In 1942, he became a member of the governor' ...
, V.R. Osborne and others. They printed the first copy as ''The Nigerian Daily times'' on 1 June 1926.[
Alakija was an African barrister, while the other founders represented ''European interest groups'' in the Lagos chamber of commerce.][ The company resolved to acquire the ''African Messenger'' published by Ernest Ikoli and takeover the publication of Reuters news bulletin to service the business community.] Ernest Ikoli
Ernest Sissei Ikoli (1893–1960) was a Nigerian politician, nationalist and pioneering journalist; he was the first editor of the Daily Times. He was the president of the Nigerian Youth Movement and in 1942, represented Lagos in the Legislative C ...
was the first editor and Alakija was chairman of the board.[
Alakija and Ikoli became involved with the nationalist ]Nigerian Youth Movement The Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM) was Nigeria's first genuine nationalist organization, founded in Lagos at Stanley Orogun, with Professor Eyo Ita as the founding father and many others, including Samuel Akisanya.
Ernest Ikoli, the first editor of t ...
. Later, Ikoli became a member of the Legislative Council in 1941, while Alakija was appointed to the governor's Executive Council in 1943.
In 1928, the new publication began to gain advertising income from foreign firms operating within the country and in the next ten years arise to dominate advertising by expatriate firms. The paper adopted a policy of detachment from local political issues opting to focus on supporting issues about Nigerian progress. In the early 1930s the pan-Africanist Dusé Mohamed Ali
Dusé Mohamed Ali (Bey Effendi) (21 November 1866 – 25 June 1945)
(دوسي محمد علي) was a Sudanese-Egyptian actor and political activist, who became known for his African nationalism. He was also a playwright, historian, journalist, ...
joined the paper as a journalist at the age of 65. He later moved on to found the influential journal ''The Comet''.
The ''Dailytimes'' became a popular voice of the nationalist movement. Education was one of the first issues. In a 1934 editorial the paper opposed Native Authority schools, which they saw as controlled by stooges of the colonial administration, and advocated independent mission schools.
The first tertiary institute in the colony, Yaba College
Yaba Higher College was founded in 1932 in Yaba, now a suburb of Lagos in Nigeria to provide tertiary education to Africans, mostly in vocational subjects and teaching. The college staff were transferred to start the University of Ibadan in 1948 ...
, opened in January 1934. The ''Nigerian Dailytimes'' described it as "a grand idea, and imposing structure, resting on rather weak foundations ... we wish to declare emphatically that this country will not be satisfied with an inferior brand f education
F, or f, is the sixth Letter (alphabet), letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is English alphabet#Let ...
such as the present scheme seems to threaten".
R. B. Paul, a Liverpool businessman, who had interest in West Africa magazine and later the West African Review bought the paper in 1935.[ When ]Nnamdi Azikiwe
Nnamdi Benjamin Azikiwe, (16 November 1904 – 11 May 1996), usually referred to as "Zik", was a Nigerian statesman and political leader who served as the first President of Nigeria from 1963 to 1966. Considered a driving force behind the n ...
("Zik") launched his ''West African Pilot
The ''West African Pilot'' was a newspaper launched in Nigeria by Nnamdi Azikiwe ("Zik") in 1937, dedicated to fighting for independence from British colonial rule. It is most known for introducing popular journalism within Nigeria. The main foc ...
'' in 1937, dedicated to fighting for independence from British colonial rule, many established papers such as the ''Nigerian Dailytimes'' lost a large part of their audience. The ''Dailytimes'' responded by raising foreign capital and injecting fresh blood into the editorial team.[ In addition, the new owners hired more expatriate staff to fill the post of business manager, managing editor and works manager.] But the newspaper struggled with newsprint supply during World War II and number of paper printed dropped.
Peak years
In 1947 the London-based Daily Mirror Group, headed by Cecil King, bought the ''Dailytimes'', the ''Gold Coast Daily Graphic'', the Accra
Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...
''Sunday Mirror'' and the ''Sierra Leone Daily Mail''.
King introduced the first privately owned rotary printing press in Nigeria, plus photo-engraving, typesetting and typecasting plants. He imported skilled journalists but followed a deliberate Africanization policy.
The Mirror Group introduced popular innovations such as short paragraphs and sentences, many illustrations and photos, and human interest stories.
The paper's circulation rose from 25,000 daily in 1950 to 95,000 in 1959.[
During the 1950s the ''Nigerian Dailytimes'' played an important role in the process that led to independence in 1960.][ At the beginning of the 1950s, the firm hired Percy Roberts, a journalist as editorial adviser and later General Manager. Roberts produced new publications such as the ''Sunday Times'' and the ''Sporting Record''.]
Ismail Babatunde Jose had joined the paper in 1941 as a technical trainee. He was soon promoted to reporter, then regional correspondent and eventually assistant editor. Cecil King appointed him editor in 1957. Jose became managing director in 1962 and chairman in 1968.
He changed the name of the flagship newspaper to its present ''Dailytimes Nigeria'' on 30 May 1963.[
Jose was in charge at a time when the oil boom was starting in Nigeria and advertising revenue was plentiful.
Jose hired young graduates and trained them to become self-confident, independent reporters and columnists.][
In 1965 he established the Times Journalism Institute, which was still training journalists forty years later.
In 1957 the newspaper sponsored the first beauty pageant in Nigeria, ]Miss Nigeria
Miss Nigeria is an annual pageant showcasing positive attributes of Nigerian women and awarding university scholarships. The winner portrays exemplary qualities and serves as a role model for young women in the country. The pageant is currentl ...
, and ran the pageant without competition for many years. Rosemary Anieze, Miss Nigeria of 1960, was named Miss Independence. She was one of the most publicized beauty queens in the history of Nigeria.
In 1963 the ''Dailytimes'' launched the magazines ''Modern Woman'' and the ''Flamingo''.[
Starting in 1963, ownership of the paper was gradually transferred to Nigerians, a process that was completed by 31 March 1974.][
By the 1970s the paper dominated the Nigerian publishing industry with a string of related papers and magazines.][ By 1975 the ''Dailytimes'' had grown to a circulation of 275,000 copies while the ''Sunday Times'' reached 400,000. No other Nigerian newspaper has achieved such levels apart from ]MKO Abiola
Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola , also known as M. K. O. Abiola (24 August 1937 – 7 July 1998) was a Nigerian businessman, publisher, and politician. He was the Aare Ona Kankafo XIV of Yorubaland and an aristocrat of the Egba clan.
M.K.O ...
's ''Daily Concord'' in the early 1990s.
Public ownership
The Federal Government of Nigeria acquired 60% of the ''Dailytimes'' and its main rival, the ''New Nigerian Newspaper'', on 1 September 1975. A government statement read:
"The Federal Military Government wants to state that its acquisition of the total ownership of New Nigeria and equity (60%) of DTN ailytimes Nigeriawill in no manner contrail the independence of the newspapers published by the 2 establishments. Government wants to underline its policy of full support of press freedom at all times".
This statement was questionable, since the takeover was clearly designed to reduce criticism of the military government.[
In March 1976, Jose was forced out of his position.][
In 1977 the government assumed total ownership and control.][
At first the paper did retain a degree of editorial independence. In 1979 the ''Evening News'', owned by the ''Dailytimes'', published an article saying that Chief Rotimi Williams was being sued by the children of a deceased client. Rotimi successfully sued the government-owned newspaper for libel. In the 1980s and into the 1990s the paper ran frequent editorials denouncing corruption and deploring the decline in morals.][
In 1981 the editor, ]Tony Momoh
Prince Tony Momoh (27 April 1939 – 1 February 2021) was a Nigerian journalist and a politician who was Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture (1986–1990) during the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida.
Birth and education
M ...
, was summoned to appear before the Senate led by its president, Joseph Wayas, on charges of contempt. In what became a cause célèbre
A cause célèbre (,''Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged'', 12th Edition, 2014. S.v. "cause célèbre". Retrieved November 30, 2018 from https://www.thefreedictionary.com/cause+c%c3%a9l%c3%a8bre ,''Random House Kernerman Webs ...
, Momoh established the right for his paper to protect its sources.
In a 1983 editorial the ''Nigerian Dailytimes'' said "..the rate of corruption, bribery, indiscipline, immorality, cheating, idleness, drug addiction, armed robbery, smuggling and other vices has currently assumed an alarming proportion in this country".
Onyema Ugochukwu
Onyema Ugochukwu (born 9 November 1944) is a Nigerian economist, journalist, and politician. Ugochukwu served as the senior Communications Director#Communications in politics, Special Adviser on Communication to Nigerian President Olusegun Ob ...
had risen through the ranks, becoming the first editor of the ''Business Times'' before going to London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in 1983 for a four-year stint as Editor of ''West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...
'' magazine. When he returned in 1987 he was appointed editor-in-chief of the ''Dailytimes''.
In April 1990, the editor of ''The Punch
''The Punch'' is a Nigerian daily newspaper founded On August 8, 1970. Punch Nigeria Limited was registered under the Companies Act of 1968 to engage in the business of publishing newspapers, magazines and other periodicals. It was designed to i ...
'' was arrested for publishing a cartoon that implied Nigerians were unhappy that a recent attempted coup by Gideon Orkar Major Gideon Gwaza Orkar (October 4, 1952 - July 27, 1990) was a Nigerian military officer who staged a violent coup against the government of General Ibrahim Babangida on April 22, 1990. Orkar and his conspirators seized the FRCN radio station, v ...
had failed.
As president of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Ugochukwu coordinated a campaign to persuade the government to release ''The Punchs editor. Ugochukwu played a conciliatory role between the press and the military government until he resigned from the paper as executive director of publications in 1994.
Circulation steadily declined as the administrations of Generals Ibrahim Babangida
Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (born 17 August, 1941) is a retired Nigerian Army general and politician. He served as military president of Nigeria from 1985 until his resignation in 1993. He rose through the ranks to serve from 1984 to 1985 as Ch ...
and Sani Abacha
Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military officer and politician who ruled as the military head of state of Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998. He seized power on 17 November 1993 in the last successful c ...
tightened control over the newspaper in the 1990s, and the public turned to livelier independent publications.[
The newspaper was mismanaged. On 16 December 1998, shortly before the return to civilian rule, hundreds of workers of the ''Dailytimes'' began an indefinite strike because their salaries were five months in arrears.
Under the civilian administration of President ]Olusegun Obasanjo
Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its pres ...
, the Bureau of Public Enterprises started the process of returning the ''Dailytimes'' to private ownership. After a failed attempt at a public offer (IPO
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...
), the Dailytimes Nigeria Plc was advertised for sale in 2003.
In 2004 Folio Communications was approved as the preferred bidder, gaining control with 96.5% of shares.[
]
Folio Communications
The sale process was confused, resulting in various lawsuits. Former employees did not receive their termination benefits.
Later, Folio did pay some of the employees who had been laid off when the newspaper was closed in 2007, but many had not been paid by 2010 despite efforts by their union to obtain the money owed them. Folio Communications, who formally took over the media giant on 14 March 2007, was accused of asset stripping
Asset stripping is a term used to refer to the practice of selling off a company's assets in order to improve returns for equity investors. In many cases where the term is used, a financial investor, referred to as a 'corporate raider', takes cont ...
.
According to the main owner, Fidelis Anosike, the ''Dailytimes'' had large real estate holdings but the equipment and buildings were obsolete. Anosike said he appointed Ben Okoye to handle disposal of some assets to fund modernization. When Okoye and his friend, Senator Ikechukwu Obiorah
Ikechukwu J. Obiorah (born 29 August 1961) was elected Senator for the Anambra South Senatorial District of Anambra State, Nigeria, taking office on 29 May 2007. He is a member of the People's Democratic Party (PDP).
Obiorah attended Obafemi ...
, realized the extent of the real estate assets, they started planning a hostile takeover and initiated court proceedings to prevent the company being turned around before then.[
In April 2010 the Attorney-General of the Federation filed a 21-count charge of conspiracy and stealing of over N3 billion worth of property belonging to ''Dailytimes Nigeria'' against the brothers Fidelis and Noel Anosike, owners of Folio Communications.][
In March 2011, a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos quashed the charges against the Anosikes.] A Lagos High Court also cleared Senator Ikechukwu Obiora from being investigated by the police over an alleged issuance of dud cheques to Folio Communications.[ Later that month another judge failed to uphold the annulment of the charges against the owners.
As of April 2011, the print newspaper had still not restarted production.][
]
References
{{Major Nigerian newspapers
Newspapers published in Lagos
1925 establishments in Nigeria
Publications established in 1925
Daily newspapers published in Nigeria