Punch Reporter Allegedly Expelled From Aso Rock Villa

Punch reporter has allegedly been expelled from Aso Rock Villa following their protest declaration to address President Muhammadu Buhari as Major General.

Recall that earlier today, Punch declared that henceforth, they would declare President Buhari as Major General in an editorial titled; ‘Buhari’s lawlessness: Our stand’ as a symbolic demonstration of our protest against autocracy and military-style repression and refer to his administration as a regime, until they purge themselves of their insufferable contempt for the rule of law.

A Global Peace Ambassador, Communications expert, a former Director of Strategy/Communication under President Goodluck Jonathan, Jackson Ude has revealed that Punch Reporter has been expelled from the Aso Rock via his social media page.

Punch Reporter has been expelled from Aso Rock Villa!

— Jackson Ude (@jacksonpbn) December 11, 2019

Buhari reacted to the decision made by Punch to refer to him with the prefix “Major General” henceforth through his media adviser, Femi Adesina, who stated that there is no big deal about the decision and rather, it further reinforces the existence of freedom of speech and freedom of the press in the country.

Adesina on his Twitter page @FemiAdesina added that Buhari has earned the rank ‘Major General.’

He wrote, “If you decide to call him Major General, he wasn’t dashed the rank, he earned it. So, you are not completely out of order.

“The fact that you can do so is even another testimony to press freedom in Nigeria.

“All over the world, just as in our country, a large number of retired military officers are now democrats. It does not make those who did not pass through military service better than them.

“Rather than being pejorative, addressing President Buhari by his military rank is another testimony to free speech and freedom of the press, which this administration (or regime, if anyone prefers: it is a matter of semantics) has pledged to uphold and preserve”