Chief Ajibola Ogunsola, Chairman of Punch Newspaper

Like Chinua Achebe rightly puts it, ethics, morality and professionalism have completely fallen apart in one of Nigeria’s leading newspapers, The Punch going by the weight of corruption allegations levelled against a top management staff of the media house by the most senior editor of the paper in a petition to the company’s board of directors and exclusively obtained by iReports-ng.

According to one of the directors of the company who is not happy with the happenings in the organisation, the use of the newspaper by its Executive Director, Publications, Mr Azubuike Ishiekwene to corruptly enrich himself at the expense of other stakeholders has come to a head, hence his decision to leak the petition of one of their editors who resigned only last week.

Azubuike Ishiekwene
The petition details how Ishiekwene, known for his open and persistent criticism of corruption in Nigeria through his back page column in The Punch, intimidated, displaced and forced about five editors and several other editorial staff out of their job in a bid to protect and promote several individuals including corrupt politicians he collects millions of naira from as well as organizations where he serves as a consultant or director designate. The latest of such that brought out the expose against him is the allegation that he collected N15 million among other benefits from the Lagos state government to entrap and sack the most senior editor of The Punch, Mr Steve Ayorinde over the latter’s failure to stop publishing negative stories against Lagos State government believed to have engaged Azu, as he is often called in Nigerian media circle, as a consultant.

According to iReports-ng sources in the organization, some directors of the company especially children of the founder of The Punch, Chief Olu Aboderin, who are on the board have long been complaining about the activities of Azu and are now poised to use the latest scenario to ease him out of the company to protect their family’s heritage and legacy. The petition which was addressed to the Chairman of the board, Chief Ogunsola and copied to other directors and members of the board is an eye opener, a must read and indeed a can of worms. According to a director who spoke to iReports-ng in Ibadan on Wednesday,” what I have read about the young man at the centre of the allegations is incredible and I know that his friends in the Nigerian media wont want to expose one of their own and I think that is why you online publishers out there have to help us expose these too many scandals to save a reputable organization like The Punch from going down to ignominy” . The director added that if attempts are being made to cover up the allegations, some of them will not mind to petition anti-graft agencies like the EFCC to investigate all the allegations that border on corruption.