All roads lead to The Colossus Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, on Friday, September 6, 2024, where media gurus, public relations and marketing giants, and other eminent Nigerians will gather to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the passing of Pastor Dimgba Igwe, pioneer Deputy Editor of Weekend Concord and former Vice Chairman of The Sun Publishing Limited.
Igwe, also former Deputy General Overseer of Evangel Pentecostal Church, Okota, Lagos, died on September 6, 2014, at the age of 58. Born on May 16, 1956, he would have been 68 years old last May.
To commemorate the 10th anniversary of his passing, a committee of friends and mentees of Igwe has concluded arrangements for a public lecture scheduled to be delivered by veteran journalist, Father of Soft-sell journalism in Nigeria, and publisher of Prime People, Mr. Muyiwa Adetiba.
Titled Tabloid Journalism: Yesterday, Today and The Future, the public lecture will be chaired by Prince Nduka Obaigbena, Publisher of Thisday Newspapers, Chairman and Owner of ARISE Television, and past President of the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria, NPAN.
Former Governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, will be the Special Guest of Honour. Another Special Guest of Honour is the matriarch of the Igwe Family, Pastor Mrs Obioma Dimgba-Igwe, who has gallantly held the forte since her husband, Dimgba Igwe, died.
Chairman of the Organizing Committee, Chief Femi Adesina, former Special Adviser to former President Mohammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, said the epoch was conceptualized to celebrate the late Igwe’s gigantic contributions to Nigerian journalism, his unwavering commitment to good governance, public order, advancement of democracy, and general development of the country.
Adesina, a former Managing Director of The Sun and former President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) said: “This lecture is a celebration of a man who, together with his ‘twin brother’, Chief Mike Awoyinfa, midwife Nigeria’s first Saturday newspaper, Weekend Concord, at a time many had thought such novelty was impracticable in the country’s media space at the time.
“But they not only blazed the trail but also mentioned the generation of journalists who have flown the flag very high in their different spheres of calling and influence in Nigeria, Africa, and worldwide. That is why we are celebrating him through this public lecture, which will be an annual event that will get bigger each year.”