The Punch
Encyclopedia
The Punch is a Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

n daily newspaper. It is the second largest newspaper in the country in terms of circulation, with 80,000 copies published daily in 1999.

History

The Punch newspaper was founded by two friends, James Aboderin, an accountant
Accountant
An accountant is a practitioner of accountancy or accounting , which is the measurement, disclosure or provision of assurance about financial information that helps managers, investors, tax authorities and others make decisions about allocating resources.The Big Four auditors are the largest...

 and Sam Amuka, a columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....

 and editor at the Daily Times. Sam Amuka became the first editor of the Sunday Punch. In November 1976, a few years after the first print of its Sunday edition, the duo starting printing its trademark daily newspaper. Both editions were designed to favor a friendlier apolitical approach to news reporting, combining footages of social events with everyday political news. The paper sustains itself by delving into broad issues that interests a myriad of people.

However, during the twilight of the Second Republic
Nigerian Second Republic
The Second Republic was the republican government of Nigeria between 1979 and 1983 governed by the second republican constitution.- Founding :...

, political exigencies had introduced conflicts to its original intentions, Aboderin and Amuka parted ways due partly to political conflicts. Aboderin later secured the support of his former foe, MKO Abiola, after the latter left the NPN
NPN
NPN is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:*National Police of Nicaragua*Na Progu Nieznanego, a UFO research organization in Poland*National Party of Nigeria, a political party in Nigeria*New Politics Network, a UK think tank...

. The paper began to take on a political stance, mostly against the Shagari regime. Supposedly, days before the end of the administration of Shagari, a few Punch editors
Editors
Editors are a British indie rock band based in Birmingham, who formed in 2002. Previously known as Pilot, The Pride and Snowfield, the band consists of Tom Smith , Chris Urbanowicz , Russell Leetch and Ed Lay .Editors have so far released two platinum studio...

 were aware of a coup approaching and injected strong anti-government tones in their reporting.

Press freedom

The Punch was not immune to the excess of authoritarian regimes in the country. In 1990, its editor was jailed for 54 days. In 1993, and 1994, the publishing
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...

house was closed on the direction of the nation's ruler.
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