Three months after it was rested by the core investor, Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim, Nigeria’s iconic magazine Newswatch is about to stage a comeback but this time as a newspaper and a magazine.
Investigations by News Express showed that recruitment is currently ongoing for the expected two Newswatch publications. Energy House, the Broad Street, Lagos, headquarters of Barrister Ibrahim’s business group, has witnessed a flurry of activities lately following a series of interviews for those interested in working for the new Newswatch.
“Staff of the newspaper started work today while those for the magazine are expected to start soon,” said a source close to the new Newswatch. At least two other sources confirmed the story to News Express.
While the magazine will remain a weekly, it is not yet clear if Newswatch newspaper will be a daily, but this is likely since Barrister Ibrahim likes to do his things in a big way and already has printing presses with which he prints his daily newspaper, National Mirror.
It would be recalled that Barrister Ibrahim (shown in photo), who last year bought 51 per cent of the Newswatch shares, announced the suspension of operations on August 7, saying the 26-year-old publication needed to be re-engineered to become competitive again. His action was however faulted by the founding directors of the magazine, who accused him of having yet to pay the agreed 510 million naira for the purchased shares, but Barrister Ibrahim obtained a court order restraining them from interfering in the operations of the company.
NEWS EXPRESS is Nigeria’s leading online newspaper. Published by Africa’s international award-winning journalist, Mr. Isaac Umunna, NEWS EXPRESS is Nigeria’s first truly professional online daily newspaper. It is published from Lagos, Nigeria’s economic and media hub, and has a provision for occasional special print editions. Thanks to our vast network of sources and dedicated team of professional journalists and contributors spread across Nigeria and overseas, NEWS EXPRESS has become synonymous with newsbreaks and exclusive stories from around the world.