"The Death of Mr"

Dele Giwa

This title is not original. It is short but loaded with fireworks and very interesting.

It is about Guardian Newspapers but it was coined by Newswatch.

Alex Ibru

It is about two heavyweight lawyers both rich and famous but both no more. 

It is about Newswatch, their lawyer Late Gani Fawehinmi and Chief Rotimi Williams.

Rotimi William

Gani Fawehinmi

PMB was to jail two senior journalists with The Guardian Newspapers, Tunde Thompson and Nduka Irabor for carrying a story he considered offensive.

Tunde Thompson

Nduka Irabor

 In fear and panic, the publisher of  The Guardian Alex Ibru sought the help of arguably the most respected lawyer in Nigeria, Rotimi Williams. But there was a problem.

The problem was that the lawyer was a Chief. 

The Guardian had at inception decided that only Nnamdi Azikiwe and Obafemi Awolowo were to be addressed as Chief in their publications and every other person was to be addressed as Mr.

In doing that they had stepped on many powerful toes among them Rotimi Williams and it was to the same Rotimi Williams they had turned to for help.

That was how, they got down their high horse and started addressing Rotimi Williams as a Chief and in the process killing the idea of Mr. for everybody and Chief for Nnamdi Azikiwe and Obafemi Awolowo.

The other leg of the story was that Newswatch then did a story on the "death of Mr".

Mr Rotimi Williams took offence  and threatened legal action over the story claiming that his reputation had been injured.

Newswatch in turn sought the help of their own lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi. In the end Rotimi Williams had to back down but the damage had been done.