The story of Naija Times

In the summer of 2018, I was thinking — as I always do — about floating an online newspaper; the idea had been on my mind for some time. Most engagements were moving rapidly online and there was no hint back then of an impending public health crisis on a global scale.

I called Jahman Anikulapo, my brother and friend of so many seasons, and we met up at Adna Hotel in GRA, Ikeja, Lagos. We discussed the idea of the newspaper but he bluntly told me he had retired from “active” journalism. I did not argue with him, but I knew that at the right time, he would change his mind. “I’ll call Fisayo Soyombo to discuss with you,” Jahman assured me. Fisayo is a fearless and investigative journalist with a nose for news and perceptive eyes for exclusive stories. He writes very well, too. Shortly after, Fisayo announced his presence. He gave a historical excursion of existing online newspapers, the dos and don’ts and what it takes to succeed. I teased him as our “consultant” and we all laughed together. Meanwhile, Jahman was listening to our conversation and munching his favourite peppered fish served with a cold bottle of beer.

That was two years ago. On a trip to Abuja last year, I also brought up the matter with Akpandem James. When I made another trip to Abuja in March this year shortly before the forced lockdown and the compulsory isolation that followed, I reminded Akpandem again. We decided to leavethe idea in the can after discussing another project (https://makingnigeriaabetterplace.ng).“ Get ready my bro,” I told Akpandem, as I prepared to depart for the airport. “Very soon, the online newspaper dream will become a reality.” However, I continued to make my notes on the relative strengths/weaknesses of existing online newspapers including the print editions – they also have online editions. I also reviewed foreign news sites for contents, design, scope and presentation.

As it turned out, the compulsory lockdown period was an opportunity to unlock some creative ideas. Well, there you have it: Naija Times was finally consummated during the lockdown. I wanted a name such as New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times or Baltimore Sun for the paper.

I toyed with the idea of Lagos Post or Lagos Times side by side with NaijaTimes and Naija Post. What of Nigerian Post or Nigerian Times?  No. There was a rhythm about Naija; it had to be Naija. Using Lagos has its own appeal because it is a strong city brand – apart from being a commercial capital; it used to be the administrative capital of Nigeria. I reached out to Toju Ogbe, a global PR strategist, in the UK to also review the naming of the proposed online newspaper.

In brand building, the naming methodology is a critical component of a brand asset. We settled for Naija Times.From a branding perspective, Naija sits well for Nigeria. Naija Times was therefore conceived as a proudly Nigerian newspaper brand on the one hand, and to connect with Nigerians in the diaspora on the other – we want Naija Times to be “their paper” 24/7.

The next two critical steps were domain name registration and creating a logo/identity for the newspaper. Our always-ready web designer is Ayodeji Oluwadare and he was tasked with confirming dot.ng domain which was what we needed for branding the newspaper online. Luckily and surprisingly, it was available. “Deji, please register all the available domain extensions,” I told him. And he did.

It was a surprise that dot.ng was available because, before we arrived on the scene, the internet was awash with Naija this, and Naija that and they took up available social media handles. That was a riddle for Ayo Banjo, another close family friend and associate who is our digital marketing consultant, to worry about.

Ayo is one of the best hands in the industry and he successfully created and branded our social media platforms. We took the additional step of registering Naija Times as a trademark belonging to our company with the Trademark Registry in Abuja.

The next stage was for our Art Director, Izuchukwu Echezona, to come up with logo designs and he did a masterpiece of creative work. The icon (the eagle bird), font and colours as well as application on different media showed the deep thinking that went into the process and we are pleased with the overall visual impact. We settled for the current logo after a robust debate on the different options produced by Izu. Kudos, Izu!

The significance of the eagle bird will amaze you. Like all birds of prey, eagles have large hooked beaks for reaping flesh from their prey as well as strong muscular legs and powerful talons, according to information sourced from Wikipedia. When the eagle appears, it bestows freedom and courage to look ahead, and the bird is symbolic of the importance of honesty and truthful principles. Eagles fly higher than any other bird; it feeds on live meat and loves the storm. Eagles are blessed with excellent vision and they see about eight times as far as humans can.

The characteristics of the eagle are reflected in our vision and mission statements as we strive to build a strong and independent newspaper. So when Jahman, Akpandem and I began to discuss the content and character of Naija Times; the editorial policy and direction,and what the paper should be known for, we had our job well cut out for us.

This job included recruitment. We spread our drag net far and wide and the team we have assembled for the different sections made the prospects of Naija Timesgaining quick top of mind awareness even brighter. Again, it was “consultant” Fisayo we turned to and he made a few recommendations. Chris Otaigbe, a crackerjack reporter, came on board as Copy Editor/Head of Special Projects Unit; quick-witted Prince Toby Udo was hired as Content Manager while Kolawole Ojebisi with a track record in investigative journalism joined the team as News Editor.

These guys have been working round the clock for well over one month to this day. I salute their tenacity and commitment. While Akpandem will work directly with members of the Editorial Advisory Board and also edit copies, Jahman will oversee editorial content from reporters, writers and contributors.

We have writers from around the world to share their diverse experiences. Check out our “Diaspora Files” and get a sense of what we want to achieve with Naija Times. Prof Chika Anyanwu writing from Adelaide, Australia, captured the essenceof the paper. Prof said,”I feel that the best we can do from here would be to bring solutions rather than be attack dogs. Through our diaspora experiences, we can transform society. Each topic will reflect important issues that will be beneficial. My maiden contribution is on Dignity of Labour.” 

From the standpoint of our editorial policy, we are not going to be “attack dogs”in any form as Prof Anyanwu noted; instead, we want our stories to “search for solutions to our critical problems that can transform society”. As we looked ahead like the eagle to Nigeria’s 60^th independence anniversary on October 1, 2020, it became evident that we should commission a desk research and special reports on Nigeria at 60. Beginning from today, different reports on Nigeria will commemorate the occasion.

The upcoming elections in Edo and Ondo States have also become a matter of public interest. Armsfree Ajanaku, one of our Editors-at-Large in charge of “Politics, Policy & Governance”, was very passionate about covering both elections. Armsfree provided the following teaser ahead of his copy deadline: “As voters in Edo State head to the polls on September 19, one of the major unanswered questions had to do with what the people stand to gain from giving their mandate to either party.” So what Armsfree did was to analyse the major policies and governance issues which, in his view, had been relegated to the background due to political brinkmanship.

Building Naija Times website to achieve an exciting interface was not a walk in the park but we are proud of the work that Ayodeji Oluwadare, MacDonald Chigozie Nnaodi and Odion Gabriel Ejehi — he’s a wizkid and the youngest of the web designers at only 21 years old — have done. They were painstaking, diligent, patient, calm and professionally minded.

We held several editorial meetings and we also made multiple telephone calls to family, friends, colleagues and associates for a successful launch. My wife, Kemi, would ensure there was food for the team as we usually worked for long hours. By the time we picked September 15, 2020 for the launch, we set up a production team comprising my dependable associates: Lolu Durojaiye (audio-visual production specialist), Abiodun Oshinibosi (experiential marketing guru) and Ayo Banjo for a hitch-free multi-media launch. I thank them for their selfless services.

When Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi, MFR, OFR, mni; a mentor and father-figure, accepted to Chair the launch, he made our day! From the bottom of our hearts, we are thankful to the management of TVC and AIT for approving coverage of the launch of Naija Times. Dr Reuben Abati, another long standing friend and brother, also accepted without hesitation to be the Master of Ceremony. Okey Bakassi is joining us all the way from Canada to spice up the launch with a brief performance. I cannot thank them enough for their kindness.

We do not expect this ride to be smooth all the way; that would be wishful thing but when United Bank of Africa Plc made a commitment to run their advert on Naija Times from Day One, the feeling was similar to winning a jackpot. All we have to say is THANK YOU, UBA! A million thanks to Nasir Ramon who is head of Media & External Relations of UBA for facilitating the support; he’s standing in for Tony Elumelu, Chairman of UBA and our special guest of honour, to deliver his goodwill message.

Online newspapers depend largely on advertisements, donations and grants to survive. We expect the “quality” of Naija Times to attract sufficient goodwill and traction within the shortest possible time. Blessing and Nkechi are our advertising co-ordinators and they are ready, available and capable; they will explore their vast network of contacts to drive advertising revenue.

Finally, we are confident we can use Naija Times to build strong institutions for a better society by working with relevant stakeholders — this process will be a journey and not a destination. It means there’s plenty of work to be done and, with your support, we would do it to the best of our ability to achieve our goals.