ThisDay owner, Nduka Obaigbena doesn’t hide where his bread is buttered – Sowore condemns naming of Tinubu as ‘Man of the Year’

SAHARA REPORTERS 

ThisDay Newspaper, through its Board of Editors, had named President Tinubu its “Man of the Year 2024.”

Human rights activist and convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, Omoyele Sowore has criticised ThisDay Newspaper for naming President Bola Tinubu as “the man of the year.”

ThisDay Newspaper, through its Board of Editors, had named President Tinubu its “Man of the Year 2024.”

In its statement, the newspaper editors asserted that “In the face of mounting challenges and hardships, the President has remained determined and unfazed, marching on with audacious reforms to transform Nigeria.”

They noted that no individual, on a fair balance of scales, could challenge the President’s impact in 2024.

The newspaper claimed that its naming of Tinubu the Man of the Year stems from the president’s tough stance on fuel subsidy and other reforms that earned him the status.

Also, it explained that the president has shown that he is a resilient leader, adding that “his sacrifice so far and for months to come will never be in vain.”

This has, however, received a backlash from Nigerians.

Speaking in an interview with VOP TV in Lagos State on Thursday, Sowore accused the publication of bias and questioned the legitimacy of the award.  He noted that the award was part of a broader effort by the newspaper to curry favour with Tinubu.

“Nduka Obaigbena is ThisDay’s chairman of the board of editors. He doesn’t hide it; you have to like him for that. He doesn’t hide where his bread is buttered,” Sowore said, referring to the newspaper’s editorial stance.

He further claimed that ThisDay has a history of making unfounded claims in its polls. “ThisDay has been doing polls forever, and I’m saying it without hiding — we always have fights over it. They would say that somebody is going to win an election, and they didn’t conduct any polls.”

Sowore also criticised the rationale behind Tinubu’s selection as Man of the Year, likening it to controversial selections in the past. “Technically, anybody can be a Man of the Year, both a saint and a villain. There was a year that bin Laden was Man of the Year because he was the most notorious human on earth.”

He accused ThisDay of justifying the award by citing Tinubu’s “tough economic decisions,” which Sowore dismissed as harmful to Nigerians. “Any tough decision that hurts the people is not an economic decision,” he said, challenging the publication’s criteria for the award.

Sowore’s remarks have sparked a debate about media integrity and the motivations behind such recognitions, particularly in a politically charged environment.