President extends the appointments of the heads of Nigeria’s two major publicly owned broadcast and news organisations, with their second terms beginning October 20, 2026
By A1NEWS International
ABUJA, Nigeria — August 24, 2026
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has renewed the appointments of the Director-General of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Abdulhamid Salihu Dembos, and the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Ali Mohammed Ali, for another three years.
The decision means both media executives will remain at the helm of their respective organisations until 2029, subject to the terms of their renewed appointments.
The announcement was contained in a statement issued on Sunday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
Dembos and Ali were initially appointed by President Tinubu on October 20, 2023. Their renewed three-year tenures are scheduled to commence on October 20, 2026.
The decision places continuity at the top of two strategically important government-owned media institutions at a time when Nigeria’s media industry is undergoing significant changes driven by digital platforms, declining traditional advertising revenues, audience fragmentation and the growing influence of social media.
Why The Renewals Matter
The renewal of the two appointments has implications beyond routine personnel changes.
The NTA remains one of Nigeria’s largest publicly owned television networks, with a nationwide broadcasting structure and a significant role in the government’s public-information architecture.
NAN, meanwhile, provides news reports and information services to newspapers, broadcasters, digital publishers and other media organisations across Nigeria and beyond.
Consequently, the leadership of both institutions has implications for the production, distribution and presentation of information about government policies and national events.
President Tinubu’s decision therefore ensures that the leadership structures of the two organisations will remain unchanged as the administration enters a critical phase of its second half.
Dembos Gets Second Term At NTA
Abdulhamid Salihu Dembos, who is from Yola, Adamawa State, has spent much of his professional career within Nigeria’s public broadcasting system.
Before becoming NTA Director-General, Dembos served as Executive Director of Marketing at the NTA.
He also previously served as the National President of the Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Workers Union (RATTAWU).
His career with NTA dates back to 1989, when he joined the organisation as an announcer at its Kaduna station after completing the National Youth Service Corps programme.
He subsequently rose through several positions within the organisation.
Among his previous assignments were General Manager of NTA Lokoja and General Manager of NTA Kano.
He later became Acting Zonal Director of the NTA Kaduna Network Centre before retiring from the organisation in 2017.
His subsequent return to the institution’s leadership marked a continuation of a long career within Nigeria’s public broadcasting system.
Ali Retained At News Agency Of Nigeria
Ali Mohammed Ali will also continue as Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria for another three years.
Ali is a veteran journalist and media manager with more than three decades of professional experience.
His professional interests include the transformation of journalism in response to digital technology and the development of content capable of reaching increasingly diverse audiences.
His background combines journalism, media management and academic training.
Ali holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Bayero University, Kano, a graduate degree in International Affairs from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Mass Communication from Bayero University, Kano.
His experience places him within a generation of Nigerian journalists who have had to navigate the transition from traditional news production to an increasingly digital media environment.
The Digital Challenge Facing NTA And NAN
The renewed appointments come at a time when traditional public media organisations face a fundamentally altered information environment.
Television audiences increasingly consume news through smartphones, social media platforms, streaming services and online news sites.
For NTA, this creates pressure to maintain its traditional terrestrial broadcasting footprint while expanding its relevance across digital platforms.
For NAN, the challenge is equally significant.
The agency’s traditional role as a wholesale provider of news content now exists alongside an increasingly competitive digital ecosystem in which news organisations can gather, publish and distribute information almost instantaneously.
The ability of both institutions to adapt to this environment will therefore be an important test of their renewed leadership.
Tinubu Sets Performance Expectations
While renewing their appointments, President Tinubu urged both executives to justify the confidence placed in them.
According to the presidency, the two chief executives are expected to remain committed to the mandates of their respective organisations.
They were also urged to support the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
That directive places an additional political dimension on the renewed appointments because both NTA and NAN are publicly owned institutions operating within Nigeria’s government information system.
The challenge for their leadership will be to balance their statutory responsibilities with the need to provide credible, accurate and professionally produced journalism.
Public Media And Editorial Independence
The renewal also brings renewed attention to the longstanding debate surrounding the independence of government-owned media organisations.
Public broadcasters and news agencies occupy a unique position in Nigeria’s media landscape.
They are publicly funded and have statutory mandates, but their credibility ultimately depends on public confidence in the accuracy, fairness and independence of their journalism.
The issue is particularly relevant in an increasingly polarised political environment.
As the country moves toward the 2027 general elections, the performance of public media organisations is likely to attract greater scrutiny from political parties, civil society organisations, journalists and citizens.
The leadership of NTA and NAN will consequently face pressure to ensure that their platforms remain credible sources of information while fulfilling their institutional mandates.
A Critical Three-Year Window
The second terms of Dembos and Ali will begin on October 20, 2026, giving both executives a three-year window to consolidate their programmes and address structural challenges within their organisations.
For NTA, priorities are likely to include digital transformation, audience development, content quality, infrastructure, revenue generation and competition from private broadcasters and online platforms.
For NAN, the challenges include maintaining the agency’s relevance to traditional media clients while expanding its digital services and improving the speed, depth and reach of its news products.
Both institutions will also need to contend with the growing demand for fact-based journalism in an era of misinformation, artificial intelligence-generated content and rapidly circulating unverified information.
The 2027 Election Factor
The timing of the renewed appointments is particularly significant.
Their second terms will begin less than a year before Nigeria’s 2027 general elections, when the demand for reliable election-related information is expected to increase sharply.
NTA’s nationwide broadcasting network and NAN’s extensive news-gathering infrastructure could make both institutions important players in the information environment surrounding the elections.
Their credibility will therefore be tested not only by their ability to report government activities but also by how they cover opposition parties, electoral institutions, campaigns, public debates and election results.
President Tinubu’s decision to renew the tenures of Abdulhamid Salihu Dembos at NTA and Ali Mohammed Ali at NAN provides continuity at the top of two of Nigeria’s most important publicly owned media institutions.
Both executives bring extensive experience to their second terms, but the environment they will operate in is significantly different from that of 2023.
The rapid expansion of digital journalism, social media, artificial intelligence, misinformation and alternative news platforms has fundamentally changed how Nigerians consume information.
Their renewed tenure will therefore be judged not simply by institutional continuity but by whether NTA and NAN can remain credible, technologically relevant, professionally managed and trusted sources of public information.
With the 2027 elections approaching, that test will carry consequences extending well beyond the two organisations themselves.
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