NPAN sympathises with Iwuanyanwu’s family over patriarch’s death

Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) has condoled with the family of the late Publisher of Champion Newspapers, Chief (Dr.) Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, the Ahaejiagmba Ndigbo.

In a condolence message to the family through the Group Managing Director, Champion Newspapers, Dr. Nwadiuto Iheakanwa, NPAN President, Kabiru Yusuf, said: “It is with great sadness that we received the news on Thursday of the death of your father, frontline businessman, publisher and an esteemed member of our association, Chief (Dr.) Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, the Ahaejiagmba Ndigbo.

“A colossus of no mean repute, his passage has created a deep void in the nation’s socio-development landscape. We are consoled by the enviable legacies he left as a solid politician, frontline businessman and a patriot. On behalf of the Executive Council of our esteemed association, we commiserate with you and your entire family. We pray that the Almighty God, will console and uphold each and everyone of you.”

An engineer by training, Iwuanyanwu, who died at 82, bestrode the business world leaving an indelible mark in aviation, insurance, road construction, sports and newspapering. His venture into the newspaper business with the emergence of Champion Newspapers on October 1, 1988, changed the dynamics of newspapering in the country.

The paper pioneered colour printing among Nigerian newspapers and was among the first to set the stage for simultaneous printing, as the paper rolled out from presses in Lagos and Owerri, giving readers in the east the experience of reading same news with their Lagos/western counterparts.

Chief Iwuanyanwu was a sports enthusiast and for a very long time, his football club, Iwuanyanwu Nationale, rode the crest of competitive football locally and challenged for trophies on the continent.