ABOUT US

LEADERSHIP was born on October 1, 2004. On this particular day, the newspaper entered the Nigerian market as a weekly. The acceptance of LEADERSHIP by readers was almost instantaneous because of some factors: The Founding Chairman, the late Mr. Sam Nda-Isaiah, was already a best-selling author, having published and launched a compilation of his articles in LAST WORD, a column he wrote for the Daily Trust newspaper.

The column, which was very popular with Daily Trust readers, was reintroduced in LEADERSHIP. Naturally, curious readers who wanted to follow the columnist and assess his newspaper became buyers of LEADERSHIP.

By the end of 2006, the newspaper had become a barometer for gauging public policy issues. Initially stitched like a book, the newspaper became a must-read for the intelligentsia in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory and the entire nation.

On February 1, 2006, LEADERSHIP became a daily newspaper. As a daily publication, the newspaper publishes LEADERSHIP, LEADERSHIP Friday, LEADERSHIP Weekend, LEADERSHIP Sunday, and LEADERSHIP Hausa. It also added to its stable National Economy, a weekly business and economic newspaper.

Its once-rested fashion and style magazine, LeVogue, has recently been re-packaged and re-launched.

LEADERSHIP is also expanding its digital footprint to include podcast and live-streamed television services and a fast-expanding client base for our e-copy.

Our online platforms include the following social media platforms:
Twitter/X: @LeadershipNGA
Facebook: @LeadershipNGA
Instagram: @leadership_newspaper
Threads: @leadership_newspaper
TikTok: @leadershipnews
YouTube: LEADERSHIP TV
WhatsApp Channel: LEADERSHIP News

Our website, www.leadership.ng, is a leading national platform with over four million visitors monthly.

MISSION STATEMENT

“LEADERSHIP is not a regional or sectional paper. It is a national paper symbolically embedded in the nation’s capital. We shall stand up for good governance. We shall defend the interests of the Nigerian state even against its leaders, and we shall raise our pen at all times in defence of what is right. These are the values by which we intend to be assessed. We shall never, ever, for any reason, forget the noble reason for our coming into being: ‘For God and Country!’

AUDIENCE

The target audience of LEADERSHIP includes all those interested in the political, cultural, business, religious, and other aspects of the nation’s life. It is a newspaper for Nigerians and all those interested in the affairs of Nigeria – especially those interested in the pursuit of truth.

LEADERSHIP is a compact newspaper. It has a strong bias for politics and business and is reputed for its bold, progressive editorials. It is a newspaper that focuses on the activities of leaders in all spheres of life. In a country with one of the fastest-growing mobile telephone markets in the world, LEADERSHIP knows that consumers of its products and advertisers could use more than the street vendors to get the products and gain visibility daily.

OUR LEADERS

SAM NDA-ISAIAH (1962 – 2020)

Media Mogul, Serial Entrepreneur, Politician, Pharmacist, Columnist

Early Life and Education

Sam Nda-Isaiah was born in Minna on May 1, 1962, to Mr. Clement and Mrs. Eunice Isaiah.

Fondly called “Uncle Sam”, he was widely known, started his education at UNA Elementary School, Kaduna, and then proceeded to Christ Church School, Katsina Road, Kaduna, between 1968 and 1974.

Afterwards, he attended Government College, Kaduna, 1974–1979, and the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, 1979-1983. While at Government College, Kaduna, he led the school to win the Kaduna State Schools Challenge – a quiz competition among all secondary schools in the then Kaduna State (now comprising Kaduna and Katsina states).

At the University of Ife, he was the national editor-in-chief of the “Student Pharmacist”, the official publication of all the pharmacy schools in Nigeria. On graduating as a pharmacist, Sam worked briefly at the Minna General Hospital after a stint at the Kano Specialist Hospital. He did his NYSC at the General Hospital, Ilawe Ekiti, and the State Hospital, Ikere Ekiti, both in Ekiti State 1984. From 1985 -1989, he worked at Pfizer Products Limited. He resigned and launched into serial entrepreneurship.

Media Career

Despite training as a pharmacist, Sam would later become a prominent media personality and publisher of a major Nigerian newspaper, LEADERSHIP.

Sam was a Daily Trust Editorial Board member and maintained a weekly column entitled, ‘The Last Word’. He used the weekly column to espouse his beliefs and conceptualisation of governance, democracy and statecraft. He was also a member of the committee appointed by the Kano State Government to revive The Triumph, the state-owned newspaper.

In 2003, he headed Muhammadu Buhari’s presidential campaign publicity.

His entrepreneurial spirit led him to establish the LEADERSHIP Group in 2003. He started with LEADERSHIP Confidential, a subscription-only authoritative and elitist newsletter.

A year later, he started LEADERSHIP, first as a weekly newspaper, after launching “NIGERIA: FULL DISCLOSURE”, a compilation of his articles.

The launch raised about N17 million, a sum not nearly enough to rent a suitable office in Abuja, much less to start a newspaper, but he forged ahead to start LEADERSHIP. Sam has often said that his credo is, “Know your limits, then ignore them”. That must have guided his actions in starting a national newspaper with that amount.

Today, the LEADERSHIP Group is made up of LEADERSHIP, LEADERSHIP Friday, LEADERSHIP Weekend, LEADERSHIP Sunday, LEADERSHIP Ayau, the first and only daily Hausa newspaper, MDAs Monthly, GOVERNMENT and LEADERSHIP.NG.

NATIONAL ECONOMY and WEEKEND ECONOMY, focusing on business and economy, were added to the stable in 2020.

Sam’s foray into the media industry was not by accident. His interest must have been piqued as a student when he used to take vacation jobs at the New Nigerian newspapers, where his late father was the Chief Subeditor. His father’s task generously rubbed off on Sam as he became a stickler for faultless use of language in communication.

Serial Entrepreneur

Sam did not restrict himself to the media business; he had his fingers in many pies. Sam was chairman or board member of several companies to drive his expansive vision.  Through them, Sam was engaged in as diverse areas as fish farming and security services, pharmaceutical goods manufacturing, educational book publishing, e-payment, real estate, agribusiness, e-learning, telecommunications, parcel delivery, online shopping, data processing, biofuel and hospitality, park and recreation, among others.

He was the founder and Chairman of LEADERSHIP Newspapers Group., LeadershipHQ Limited, 234Register.com Limited, Leadership Holdings Ltd, and LEADERSHIP Governance Index (LGi).

He was also the Chairman of Lease Praxis Ltd, Oakhouse Forte Ltd, Allan Woods Ltd. (an education company modelled after the Washington Post Company), Free Press Ltd, The Outsource Company Ltd (an international call centre), Integrat Mobile Aggregation Services Limited (a subsidiary of Integrat South Africa), Grayston 77 Limited, PPSG Group, KhromePay Ltd, KhromeCompany, KhromeMonkey, AllFarms Ltd, Graham Foggs Ltd, Forte Agra Ltd, World Wide Canine Nigeria Ltd, Palm Rock Ltd, Mineral House Ltd, Pural Holdings Ltd, Leadership Wealth Ltd, Robertsham Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa, Marigold Hospital, Lagos, QC Analytica,  Brainstormr, Parcelmann, Leadership House Ltd – the investment company, and QXA – a fertiliser concern.

He was a director of MAP Plc, Maitama Club, Empire Securities Ltd, and the Health Reform Foundation of Nigeria (HERFON).

Sam initiated the National Affordable Medicines Initiative (NAMI) to supply cheap, quality and affordable drugs to all Nigerians. This move obtained the President’s approval, and a presidential working committee was set up to actualise.

Politics

The late Sam held strong views about governance, democracy and statecraft. Through his columns and editorials, he courageously sought to hold the nation’s political leaders to account. He called them out over their corrupt practices, poor governance, and failure to set and lead by good examples. In his writings, he was unsparing of the then-ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its leaders for various indiscretions.

He was a founding member of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) led by General Buhari before the fusion into APC ahead of the 2015 general election.  Sam had always belonged to the progressive tendency in opposition from 1999 to 2015, when it defeated the incumbent to take power.

Sam was the first to start advocating publicly that Nigerian opposition parties needed to fuse to forge a common front to wrest power from the PDP in the nation’s interest. He believed in rallying a national alliance for political outreach; that is why, as a chieftain of the APC, he consistently advocated the nation’s unity as a precursor of development.

He was to leave the comfort of speaking from the sidelines in the run-up to the 2015 general election to seek the highest office in the land on the platform of the APC.  Running under the campaign mantra, ‘Big Ideas’, Sam vied for the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) with political heavyweights like Ex-Governors Rochas Okorocha and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the eventual winner, former military head of state Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), who went on to defeat the incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015, the first of such feat in Nigeria’s political history.

Since then, he has used his newspapers to encourage the government to succeed in its pledge to entrench good governance and whittle corruption and insecurity.

Awards, Titles and Affiliations

Sam’s relentless endeavours were acknowledged and rewarded by some traditional rulers and institutions who recognised him for his contributions to humanity and nation-building.

In 2011, he was conferred with the traditional title of Kakaki Nupe by Etsu Nupe His Highness Dr Yahaya Abubakar, CFR. At the turbaning ceremony, the Sultan of Sokoto sent him a special horse gift. This was a rare honour. He was the only one of the 11 title recipients who received the Sultan’s gift that day.

He is also the Jakadan Potiskum, a title conferred by the Mai Potiskum, Alhaji Umar Ibn Bubaram.

In 2013, he was conferred with Ugwumba Ndigbo by the Igbo community in Abuja, and last year, he was conferred the title of Aare Baroyin of Akure land by the Deji of Akure.

Sam also received the Nupe Kingdom Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship.

He was conferred with the Grand Commander of Great Ife, the highest honour conferred by the Ife Alumni on its members in 2013; there are fewer than 20 such recipients today.

He was also a fellow of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and a member of the Pharmaceutical Council of Nigeria.

Global economic power shift from the West to the East engaged Sam’s interest. He is a member of the Asian think-tank, the Global Institute for Tomorrow (GIFT), based in Hong Kong. This association took him to numerous brainstorming sessions in Singapore, China, India and Hong Kong in search of solutions to today’s global problems and the promise for tomorrow.

Sam is an alumnus of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy of the National University of Singapore and the School of International and Public Affairs of Columbia University, New York. He is the Chairman of Abuja Beijing Consensus (ABC).

Sam was a member of the Institute of Directors, a member of the Vienna-based International Press Institute, a member of the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) and an executive member of the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN).

He was also a member of the Board of Trustees of Nupe Foundation and the Board of Trustees of Baze University, Abuja, and the founder of SamLeadership Foundation.

Sam was a member of the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) and the Vice Chairman of its Think Tank. He was also one of the brains behind forming the North Central People’s Forum (NCPF), a political pressure group in the Middle Belt.

In 2023, he was posthumously awarded the Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR) national honour.

Books/Special Papers

1. Nigeria: Full Disclosure: Selected Writings on Governance, Democracy and Statecraft, May 1999 – March 2004.

2. Review of the Synod Presidential Address delivered by Bishop Josiah Idowu-Fearon at the 19th Synod of the Anglican Communion in Kaduna, 2013.

3. Professor Marquis Annual Lecture at the Obafemi Awolowo University. May 2013.

Interests and Hobbies

Sam loved books. Every trip he made to any part of the world, the first place he would visit was the book stands, and he always returned with a bag full of books.

He also liked embarking on new business adventures and implementing BIG, new ideas.

Personal Life

Sam was a devoted family man and a quiet philanthropist. He generously assisted the less privileged, often supporting widows and paying for the education of many orphans of deceased friends and associates.

An extract from the article, ‘The Sam I Knew’ by Mr Azu Ishiekwene, first published on December 17, 2020, gave a hint about this aspect of his life:

“Sam was soft. And nowhere was that more apparent than when he was dealing with women, children, and vulnerable groups – or when he was talking about his close friends – a circle that included the low, the high and the mighty.

“Until l left LEADERSHIP in 2015, I kept a list of about a dozen widows into whose accounts Sam gave a standing instruction to pay various sums of money monthly. That may sound small, but remember that the company was struggling at the time.

“And when you add the list of the dozens of indigent students he catered for, the dozens more he employed directly, helped to find jobs elsewhere, or stood up for to redress an injustice, you will begin to get the picture of Sam’s charity.”

Sam was married to Zainab, and they are blessed with five children – Joshua, Fatima, David, Haddasah and Mary.

Mrs. Zainab Nda-Isaiah: Chairman, LEADERSHIP Group Ltd.

She is a seasoned and clear thinker with a track record of bringing people together to achieve goals and objectives and managing the implementation of innovative solutions. Mrs. Nda-Isaiah is highly motivated with a proven capacity to develop people. She is well-networked and successful in implementing process improvements, defining directions and achieving goals.

She assumed office as chairman of LEADERSHIP Group Limited on February 16, 2021, after the passing on of her husband and founding chairman, Sam Nda-Isaiah, on December 11, 2021.

She is fully committed to realising the vision of the founding chairman – running one of the country’s most influential media and education companies, a courageous and professional platform dedicated to the service of God and country.

Before this, Mrs. Nda-Isaiah was: Vice Chairman (2014 – 2020) of LEADERSHIP Newspapers Group Ltd and LEADERSHIP Conferences Ltd; CEO/Managing Director (2009 – 2018), Banana Republic Ltd; Deputy Chairman (2008 – 2014), Robertsham Hotel Johannesburg, South Africa; Director (2014 – date), The Outsource Company Ltd; Director (2016 – date), Worldwide Canine Ltd (a subsidiary of Worldwide Canine, San Antonio, Texas, United States);  Director (2016 – date), Mineral House Ltd; Director (2019 – date), Abuja – Beijing Consensus;  Director (2018 – date), KhromePay Limited; Director (2019 – date), 234Register.com; Vice Chairman (2014 – date), Allfarms Ltd; Director (2010 – date), Plural Holdings Ltd.; General Manager (1999 – 2001), African Telecommunications Network;  Admin Assistant (1997 – 1998), Afri-Projects Consortium (the programme managers of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF).

She holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in English Language and Literature.

Azu Ishiekwene: Senior Vice Chairman/Editor-In-Chief, LEADERSHIP Group Ltd

Before he was appointed Senior Vice Chairman/Editor-in-Chief of LEADERSHIP, Ishiekwene was the MD/E-I-C of The Interview magazine, a privately-owned monthly Q&A magazine based in Abuja and published by Banc & All, a content development and publishing company.

He is a director of the Dantiye Centre for Good Leadership and Journalism, a capacity-building centre indirectly accredited to the African Union Economic, Social and Cultural Council (AU-ECOSOCC).

He has over 35 years of experience in journalism, during which he worked as editor and executive director of publications in PUNCH and group managing director of LEADERSHIP.

He is a fellow of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, an editorial board member of the World Policy Journal, and a founding board member of the Global Editors Network. He was chairman of the judging panel of the CNN African Journalist of the Year Award.

He is a columnist with local and international media houses, including City Press of South Africa, Ghanaian Chronicle and Clarin of Argentina. He is the author of the books The Trial of Nuhu Ribadu and Writing for Media and Monetising It.

Azu is one of Nigeria’s most widely read and syndicated columnists, with his articles published in Argentina (in Spanish) and North America. He is a graduate of Mass Communication from the University of Lagos and holds a master’s degree in Public Administration and International Affairs from the same university.

He is currently chairman of OpenFees, an Abuja-based NGO that pays school fees for disadvantaged students in public schools in Abuja.

Michael Okpere: Vice Chairman

Born in 1957, an accountant by profession, Mike trained with Deloitte Haskins and Sells and Ijewere & Co Chartered Accountants. He was GM of Nigeria Seed Cotton Company Ltd, where he pioneered and introduced Nigerian cotton into the international market in 1988.

He syndicated the first NEXIM loan to establish Nigeria’s first indigenous cotton processing plant. This factory employs over 300 Nigerians.

He was the Managing Director of Cash Affairs Finance Ltd and took up the position of Group Executive Director at LEADERSHIP Group Limited in 2012.

He was appointed Group Managing Director of LEADERSHIP Newspapers in 2016 and, after that, the Vice Chairman of Leadership Holdings Ltd till his recent appointment as Vice Chairman of LEADERSHIP Group Ltd.

He is well respected as a financial engineer and has been part of numerous reconstruction and revitalisation teams nationwide since 2005.

He is a member of the IBB Golf and Country Club, an avid golfer, and a very well-travelled person who is married and has children.

Muazu Elazeh: Group Managing Director

Muazu Elazeh is currently the Group Managing Director of LEADERSHIP Newspaper Group. Before this position and his over 11-year career in LEADERSHIP, he has held various roles, including serving as the Katsina State correspondent.

Within these 11 years, he was the Managing Director for the same media organisation, having served variously as Senior Reporter, State Correspondent, Editor of the Sunday title and Editor of LEADERSHIP, the flagship title.

Before joining LEADERSHIP, he worked with the Peoples Media Limited and the Nasarawa Publishing Company as publishers of Peoples Daily and the now-rested Nigerian Newsday newspapers.

Muazu is a 2002 graduate of the University of Jos and holds a postgraduate diploma in Mass Communication from Bayero University, Kano.

Abraham Nda-Isaiah: Director, Conferences and Media

Abraham was born on May 7, 1969. He was educated at Rimi College, Kaduna, and the School of Basic Studies, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. An alumnus of the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, where he obtained a degree in Mechanical Engineering, he also has a Master’s degree (M.A.) in Criminology and Security Studies from the University of Abuja.

Despite his educational background, Abraham has spent most of his career in management. This has seen him attending high-level seminars and workshops over the years, including a stint at the prestigious Kaduna Business School, where he specialised in developing cutting-edge operations strategy.

After working as a part-time lecturer with the National Teachers’ Institute’s Distance Learning Scheme in Wudil Zone, Kano State, he served in different challenging positions at high-profile outfits such as Croft and Housemann Ltd, Oakhouse Forte Ltd, and the Institute of Directors, Nigeria, as coordinator of the Kaduna branch.

A pioneer staff of LEADERSHIP, Abraham has served variously as Resource Manager, Assistant General Manager, General Manager, Executive Director, Group Executive Director and Managing Director. Now, he sits on the company’s board of directors. In all these positions, he initiated and supervised far-reaching reforms which helped to place the media organisation in an enviable position among similar ones in the country today.

Abraham is a member of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) Member, the Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE), a Certified Institute of Treasury and Financial Management, a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Administration, an Associate Member of the Nigerian Institute Public Relations and Associated Member, Society for Peace Studies and Practitioners.

He also served on the panel of external judges of the FRCN Excellence Awards Scheme.