ANEC 2025:When President Bola Tinibu Honoured Nigerian Editors
By Abdullahi Yusuf
The Nigerian Guild of Editors(NGE), the nation’s elite union of Editors, Media Executives and Senior Journalists,was on Wednesday,November 12,2025, immensely honoured by the President and Commander-In-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, when he declared open the 2025 edition of the All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC).
The President opened the two-day conference at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa with over 400 Editors, Media Executives, Associates and other members of the Pen Profession in attendance.
With the theme: “Democratic Governance and National Cohesion: The Role of Editors,”
the 2025 ANEC was adjudged historic as it was the first time the gathering would be declared open by the President of the country since the conference was established in 2004 by the Baba Halilu Dantiye-led Executives of the Guild.
The incumbent Executives of the Guild led by Eze Anaba who confirmed the feat at the conference’s opening ceremony, said the Guild was deeply honoured and thanked the President for the gesture.
In his address of welcome, Anaba said ANEC is more than a professional convention as it is a forum for national reflection, dialogue and renewal.
He paid tribute to past leaders of the Guild, including Malam Baba Halilu Dantiye, who initiated the first ANEC in 2004, and other veterans such as Uncle Sam Amuka, Prince Nduka Obaigbena and Dr. John Momoh, whose vision,he said,continues to inspire contemporary journalism in Nigeria.
Anaba said the Nigerian media remained a cornerstone of democracy, “and editors are entrusted with the solemn duty of informing, educating and guiding public opinion with integrity, balance and patriotism.”
He then lamented that the economic situation in the country had forced some media houses to shut down, while some that struggle to operate cannot pay workers’ salaries.
This, the president said, had contributed to the increase in unemployment, as it sends the workers in such media houses to the labour market.
He, therefore,called for tax exemption, the establishment of low-interest loans for the media, and a digital transformation and innovation fund, while proposing a Media Freedom and Safety Charter to protect journalists from what he called “the hostile environment.”
In his response,President Tinubu noted the Guild’s requests and promised to look into them, amid thunderous ovations from the editors,the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris Malagi,and other invited guests.
And while declaring the conference open, President Tinubu urged the Editors to uphold integrity and fairness in their reportage, describing responsible journalism as essential to sustaining democracy and national cohesion.
He said the media must continue to act as a stabilising force in a rapidly changing information environment.
“The freedom secured through struggle is not self-sustaining. It requires constant vigilance and responsible exercise.
“A democracy is sustained not only by elections and laws, but also by the integrity of public conversation,” he said.
Tinubu commended the Nigerian press for its historic role in advancing justice and democracy, recalling how journalists “endured intimidation, detention and personal hardships in defence of the public good.”
The president, however, cautioned that the digital age had amplified misinformation, making the editorial function more critical than ever.
He urged the editors to be constructive in their criticism of government policies while maintaining fairness and accuracy.
“As editors and managers of the national information space, you shape narratives. You influence public understanding. You decide what becomes national focus and how our collective challenges are interpreted.
“The weight of that responsibility is significant. It must be exercised with wisdom, fairness and a strong sense of national duty.
“Nigeria is a large and diverse country. Debate and differences are part of our reality. However, disagreements must never translate into the erosion of national cohesion.
“Criticism, when informed and constructive, is a service to the nation. But cynicism that breeds mistrust and despair can weaken the very foundations of the society we all seek to improve.The national interest must always remain paramount.
“We live in a time when information travels rapidly and widely. Social media has made every citizen a potential publisher. This has benefits, but it also increases the speed and scale of misinformation.
“Falsehood can take root before truth has time to speak. In such an environment, the editorial function is more important than ever. Verification must be your anchor; balance must be your principle and professional judgement must be your guide.
“I urge you, therefore, to continue upholding the highest standards of journalism. Report boldly, but do so truthfully. Critique government policy but do so with knowledge and fairness. Your aim must never be to tear down, but to help build a better society,” the president added.
In a keynote address at the occasion,Governor Hope Uzodinmma of Imo State and Chairman, APC Governors Forum, also urged the Editors to put national interest in their reportage of activities, especially as the nation approaches the 2027 general elections.
“We are about 17 months from the next presidential election.What you do between now and then will determine not only what Nigerians know about 2027 but how they experience it.
Amid rancorous laughter and ovation from the Editors,Uzodimma continued:”You will have to choose whether to frame candidates as threats or alternatives.You will choose whether to emphasize differences that divide or principles that unite.
“National interest must be your editorial North Star,and national interest,in an election year, means coverage that informs without inflaming, that holds power accountable without treating every contest as a catastrophe, that allows citizens to make choices without making them believe that the process is irredeemably broken,” he said.
He, however, noted that the editors had over the years, accomplished much that deserved recognition.
“Your newsrooms have produced investigative journalists who exposed corruption.You have published reports that held power accountable.
“Through your coverage,you have amplified marginalized voices.These contributions matter,and they are essential to democracy,” Uzodinmma said.
He said the administration of President Bola Tinubu had understood what was at stake, describing his opening of the conference as a “huge statement of priority.”
“When a sitting president dedicates time to a gathering of editors and communication professionals,it signals that the battle against disinformation and project of national cohesion are treated as matters of national importance,” the Governor added.
The two-day conference ended on Thursday with a Gala Night and induction of new Fellows as well as new members of the Guild held at the Chida Hotel, Abuja.
Among the newly-inducted Fellows were Prof.Sulaiman Ya’u Sule of the Bayero University,Kano(BUK),Mr.Ephraims Tokan Sheyin,the immediate-past Editor-In-Chief of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN),and Dr.Amanze Obi.
The Editors had since departed Abuja to their various operational bases across the country, looking forward to another ANEC in 2026.