Daily Trust - the online edition

Muhammad Rayyan was the pioneer accountant of Media Trust Limited. He joined its services ten years ago. In this interview he shares his experience and captures the development of the company, though he has his grudges.

Q: Can you give us a brief history of yourself, where you were born, your educational background and your working experience?

Aminu Rayyan: My names are Muhammad Aminu Rayyan, I was born in January 1968 and I had my early primary school at Islamiya Primary School, Bukuru, Plateau State, after which I gained admission into St. Mark Institute of Commerce, Bukuru. After that, I proceeded to the Kano State Polytechnic where I obtained my ordinary national diploma in Accountancy. I had one year attachment with the Plateau Cinemas Limited Jos, I joined the company as a staff on part time basis before I went for my HND, which I successfully completed in the year 1994, after which I proceed to the NYSC and passed out in June 1996. So, I served the company for one and half years, until I joined Media Trust’s service – that was January 1998 precisely, the year that the paper started.

Q: I heard that you are the first accountant of the organisation at a time it was being established, with the kind of background you had then, how did you accept to face the challenge as a first accountant of a typical media house in Nigeria?

Ans: Of course I faced the challenge, but without challenges you cannot understand your capacity. In fact, it was very interesting for me to have faced the challenge of having to be the person who started the accounting books of the company. Even though I had some misunderstanding of the process involved in the newspaper company, I was able to overcome all the difficulties, although there was a mistake because of the initial impression given to me in the company. I thought they had their printing machine – everything. So when I was asked to give my proposal on how to handle the account of the company, I suggested integrated accounting, i.e. when cost and financial accounting go hand-in-hand and inter-woven together. Later I realised we were not having our own machine to print; we just sub-let the printing job to others. Notwithstanding, I tried to adjust, to make the adjustment reflect the administrative tasks and circulation aspect of the accounting for the company.

Q: And how did you manage to take care of the entire accounting responsibility of the company as the first accountant, I know at that time you had one or two supporting staff?

Ans: Of course, that was a challenge but determination was the central issue. If you have the zeal and the courage to face whatever challenge you get, I don’t think there would be a problem because, apart from me being in the department of account, I was supervising the administrative aspect and also supervising the production of the paper at the Nation’s House, in Kaduna, where we started printing. And I also supervised the circulation because I was the person who usually write report for the general manager then on the production expenses and the printing and circulation of the paper. I was also the person who was supervising administrative jobs like procurement of all office equipment.

Q: How long did you supervise this work while in the account department?

Ans: I think I operated for about six to seven months or something like that I can’t give the time precisely like that but I was in the account single-handedly for about six months or so. Then later an account assistant was given to me. Much later, after a year, an account officer was also engaged in the department. So, since then I have been working with them until when we got back to Sullubawa Close, also in Kaduna. That was when the manager of finance and admin was employed, that was when the responsibility of heading the department was taken away from me. Even before that time, I was designated with the rank of Manager Finance & Admin, preparatory to the formal appointment. However, that was not possible due to some medical problem I had then.

Q: For the brief moment you handled the account section of the Media Trust, even before you came you had known some papers existed in the north. For instance there was Democrat; there was Reporter; there was Sentinel; there was Citizen and there was also Today before Media Trust came up. Why didn’t you find out why these papers did not perform initially so that it would guide you in your responsibility in Media Trust when you took up initially?

Ans: Well, in the first instance, I think before the people who established this company established it, they did their home work because the MD then is a journalist and the General Manager who is an economist had a good background in media industry; and second, there is another quality and characteristics this company has that differentiated it from all these newspapers you mentioned. The most important thing is that the company was not started as a one-man business. Most of the companies you are talking about started as one person business, maybe two and you find them related to each other.

In this situation, we had more heads that are better. So we have the MD, the general manager and other directors who are also there. And apart from that experience in the newspaper industry, we didn’t take chances from the beginning of the paper. Though the company was not rich, at least they were prudent in the management of resources. From my own experience, they don’t allow things to happen just like that, because I know personally the General Manager (Alhaji Isiaq Ajibola) then had to tell me the strategic area; that I should be vigilant especially in the press, and that was why I got a nickname from the press people in Nations House because I always monitor each and every movement of one of them. They nicknamed me "custom". In addition, a newspaper must not allow itself to be seen as somebody’s mouthpiece.

Q: And did your primary responsibility as an accountant suffer that time?

Ans: Well, there is no way you cannot say the responsibility will not suffer, but the only thing is that, I have the courage and I wanted to do things squarely. So, I ended up suffering, because it tells on my body that something is happening, I had the normal account work, sometimes if I sat down, I would not get up from the seat until after two hours. I could remember, there was a time when the General Manager was asking if I was eating at all, because he always found out that I was on my seat. This is because if you are alone or maybe the assistant you have is not somebody who you can release some responsibilities to all the minor clerical work I relinquished to him, but the major accounting work I have to do it myself, so you don’t have any chance. When it is printing time, I would be in the press, and I have to follow the paper until we circulated it, put the paper for every location, then I come and write my report, present it to the General Manager.

Q: Malam Rayyan, I understand that before you were employed the company had its accounting system established by a chartered accounting firm, why did you decide to introduce your own system?

Ans: I don’t think I was given any accounting format or any accounting manual….

Q: Not an accounting manual but the accounting system that was operated here. There was an accounting system that was operating here before you came in, why did you not sustain that?

Ans: Well, I don’t know of any accounting system, all I know is that the General Manager was keeping certain records at the time. I was one of the staff here when this paper launched its own preview copy. We shared the preview copy on the streets. We went to the banks, office to office, giving to people free.

Q: So what was the system of accounting before the paper was circulated, but they gave you an accounting system established by an accounting firm to continue with?

Ans: No there wasn’t. I just started the system, but I know that there are some records that the General Manager was keeping, specifically when the company was just for the two of them. Ordinarily when you say records, it is different from saying accounting system or accounting records, I hope you understand?

When you are dealing with somebody you have a record of it, but not necessarily according to certain format with standard or principle. The important thing is that you have a record, I collected so and so amount from this person; this person contributed this and so on and so forth this is not accounting; it is just record. I was given this record, and it was based on this record that I started. In fact, even the main work that I started had nothing to do with this, because something about shareholder asset, all these are things that has to do with asset or capital account. I hope you understand? But the main issue are about dealing with receipting, collecting money and what have you, all these things I started with putting my cash book and records into those account and what have you. I suffered, for I was not given enough space, even to put thing on ground, one, because of lack of staff at the beginning; two, because sometimes you normally start your job, these people do not know the type of person you are, perhaps lack of trust. Every attempt you try to do a thing is viewed in one way or the other as if it is correct or it is fraudulent. So, I have passed through many suspicions and challenges in handling the account department then.

Q: Lastly, now that the company is clocking 10 years, how do you feel that you belong to this company that started from nothing to something important today?

Ans: As a pioneer staff, I can say everybody will be happy to be associated with achievement, so I am very much happy that I’m in fact the first person to take his appointment letter and resume work among the people who were employed because I came here and met Samaila Tanko, and Samaila Tanko was not employed after the establishment of Media Trust. He was then working for the MD before the MD transfered him to Media Trust. So apart from Samaila, I was the first person who took his appointment and given responsibility. In fact, I could remember I had problems with some journalists because of my rigidity on policies and issues. Then, they even made jest of me; when the first auditors came, saying I was always claiming to be honest, but the auditors always gave me pass mark, and these guys at the end of the day they themselves were even praising me.

Q: Malam Rayyan, as the first accountant you started certain systems, are they still enduring?

Ans: Some parts are still enduring, like the system of recording newspaper sales and the reporting system just with minimal adjustment. You know as the company is growing, when you are talking about one man with probably the assistant of the GM because he was the person who was in the media, I was a fresh graduate at the time, so I felt even satisfied that as a fresh graduate, I was given appointment in a new company. So it is even something that I am proud of. It was the GM who sometimes gave me some hints about how newspapers work. Apart from that you can see now the company is big, there is need for the updating of certain things and there was time that some of the people you give responsibility may decide to say ok let me bring consultants not necessarily because somebody does not know what to do, but some people cannot take decision. Unlike me, if not because I have unnecessarily limits, I would have done better than what I had done.

Let me say this: each time there is over supervision, it discourages many people. So its not enough for the management to start accusing staff of non-performance when they are not given enough opportunities to show their talent.

Q: How many times did your colleagues come to you for guidance and direction on certain issues beyond their comprehension?

Ans: I cannot recall how many times but they have been coming. They have come and they still coming; even up until now, the audit that I left, sometimes the staff do come to me and ask me certain things, even people from the account come to me sometimes and ask me one thing or the other. So it not something that I have been keeping records just to show my achievement, that is just something natural. If they come I will give them the advice, and sometimes they say how do you do this thing when you were here when similar things come up, I tell them most of these things. If it is pertaining to the bank, I will tell them to write to the bank and tell them so, so, so. Even the external Auditors sometimes do come and ask me some few things when they come for their assignment.

Q: How would you assess yourself working?

It is left for the management to think I have performed excellently or not, but for me as far as I’m concerned, I have done my best and can do more. If there is satisfaction, the management is the one responsible for giving the credit, so I cannot grade myself. It will amount to yabonkai, (self praise).

Q: Having been the first accountant of the company, are you satisfied that there is a Financial manager other than you?

Ans: Of course I am satisfied. If you refer to one of my comments, I made reference to the time I was designated Manager, Finance & Admin, but as fate would have it, I could not be on health ground. However, this is not to say I do not have some grudges over some areas which I feel unfairly treated.

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