The International Press Institute, Nigeria has inaugurated a six-man Steering Committee for the successful hosting of the IPI World Congress in Abuja in June 2018.
A member of IPI Nigeria, Malam Garba Shehu, who confirmed this development in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, said the IPI Nigeria had also set up a secretariat for smooth operation of its activities.
According to Shehu, the Steering Committee, headed by the President of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, Nduka Obaigbena, has two deputies.
The deputies are: Kabiru Yusuf, Chairman, Daily Trust; and Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity.
Other members of the committee are: Raheem Adedoyin, Secretary of IPI Nigeria; the Head of the Secretariat, Funke Egbemode, the President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors; and a representative of the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
The statement said: “One of the resolutions taken at the meeting on Thursday hosted by the Daily Trust in Abuja indicated that IPI Nigeria will open up the event to the participation of all media organisations in the country.”
In his acceptance speech as the Chairman of the Planning Committee, Obaigbena, according to the statement, described the IPI World Congress in Abuja in June 2018 as “the most important media event in our country in the last 50 years”.
Obaigbena added: “We must do everything to make our country great.
“We must not under-estimate or under-rate the greatness of our country.”
The NPAN President called for the support of all Nigerians in hosting the meeting, which he described as a “public-private partnership” event.
The Publisher of Vanguard newspaper, Sam Amuka-Pemu, said the hosting of IPI World Congress “is an awesome task which calls for the support of all Nigerians.
“It means a lot to the government and people of Nigeria.”
The Chairman of IPI Nigeria, Malam Kabiru Yusuf, cautioned against skepticism and image dissonance concerning Nigeria which, if not handled very well may torpedo the country’s hosting of the event.
He, therefore, charged the newly-established secretariat to be ready to respond to international enquiries particularly with regards to the issues of safety.
The other members of the Planning Committee in attendance at the meeting include: a veteran of the IPI, Malam Ismaila Isa, Malam Wada Maida, Nnamdi Njemenze of the Nigeria Press Council, Emma Agu and Timothy Oyedeji representing the Minister of Information.
IPI inaugurates Committee for 2018 World Congress in Nigeria
