…As Otu reactivates Nigerian Chronicle, commissions new printing press

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, has urged political actors and the media to resist misinformation and hate speech, and to place national unity above partisan interests. He called on journalists to “be fast, but be accurate” and for governments at all levels to invest in training and retraining of media professionals.

The minister made the call on Thursday in Calabar during the official reactivation of the remodelled Cross River State Newspaper Corporation and the commissioning of a new state-of-the-art Government Printing Press.

Delivering the keynote address, Idris commended Governor Bassey Otu for repositioning the 56-year-old institution rather than allowing it to “disappear into history.”

He said the transformation of the Corporation into the Cross River Information Hub and the new press was about “restoring an institution, preserving institutional memory and renewing confidence in credible information and professional journalism.”

“In today’s fast-paced digital and AI-driven media space, credibility has become more important than speed,” Idris said. He charged the new Hub to become a centre for credible journalism, digital innovation and public engagement that will “tell the Cross River story confidently to Nigeria and the world.”

The Minister also stressed that “a government that does not preserve its records risks losing its history,” and defended the Federal Government’s reforms under President Bola Tinubu. On the removal of petrol subsidy, he said: “The answer to the hardship associated with reform is not to dismantle reform; it is to accelerate its benefits.”

In his remarks, Cross River State Governor, Senator Bassey Otu, said the reactivation was in fulfilment of his pledge to “engender free flow of information” and strengthen every state’s information asset. He noted that his administration had earlier upgraded CRBC’s transmission equipment and office blocks.

Describing the Nigerian Chronicle, established in 1974 but moribund for about two decades, as a crucial information apparatus, Otu said the government invested “scarce finances” to procure new printing machines and renovate the complex vandalized during the 2020 #EndSARS protests.

He charged the Editorial Board to set up a Critical Response Initiative to provide timely news, counter misinformation and project the administration’s development milestones. “This is one thing for the government to reactivate the press,” he said. “It is another for staff to justify the investment through hard work and protection against vandalism.”

Earlier, the immediate Past Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Dr. Erasmus Ekpang, described the occasion as “epoch-making” and a rebirth of the institution that has shaped Cross River’s voice for over five decades.

He said the new press now places the state “shoulder to shoulder with the best in the nation” in printing capacity. Ekpang disclosed that 30 ad-hoc staff and 25 permanent staff have been employed, and that the Governor has approved the conversion of the complex into a full-fledged Information Hub with a palatial event centre.

He described the revived Corporation and Press as “instruments of truth, platforms of accountability, and engines of progress.”

The Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Pastor Ekpenyong Cobham, said the new Printing Press would end years of reliance on third-party vendors that caused high costs, delays, and security risks.

He listed the benefits as cost efficiency, protection of sensitive government documents, direct job creation for skilled technicians and designers, and internal revenue generation through commercial jobs.

Former Governor Chief Clement Ebri described the commissioning as deeply personal, recalling that his journalism career began at the Nigerian Chronicle in 1978. He described the paper of that era as “an institution” with a print run of up to 120,000 copies and a reputation built on “TRUTH AND SERVICE.”

Ebri lamented the loss of archives during the 2020 #EndSARS protests and urged Cross Riverians to donate old copies and materials to rebuild the library. “When a people lose their records, they lose part of their collective memory,” he said.

He urged management to embrace both print and digital platforms. “Let us not kill the print media simply because the digital era has arrived. Let us synchronise the two,” he said. “The question is no longer ‘How do we save the Nigerian Chronicle?’ It is ‘How do we reposition the Nigerian Chronicle to matter again?'”

Dignitaries present included the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Elvert Ayambem, Chief Judge Justice Akon Ikpeme, and pioneer Chronicle staff including Chief Raymond Ekpu.

The Governor later toured the new printing facility.