Biography

Dele’s intelligence and love for reading powered him through the limitations of his humble family background. He attended Oduduwa College Ile-Ife and went on to study at Brooklyn College, New York where he graduated with a B.A. in English and progressed to Fordham University, New York, where he acquired an M.A. in Public Communication.

As a professional, Dele started his working life in Barclays Bank (now Union Bank) in 1970. He realised soon enough that he had no passion for figures and moved to the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (now the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, FRCN), as a member of the news staff between 1970 and 1971.

While in the United States, Dele joined the staff of New York Times as a member of the news staff from 1974 to 1979 and upon his return to Nigeria, he took up the position of a Features Editor at the Daily Times, Lagos from 1979 to 1980.

His Page Seven feature columns, Press Snaps and Parallax View influenced public discourse and added value to Daily Times readership.

In 1980, he became the first Editor of the Sunday Concord where Press Snaps and Parallax View fused into a single column called Parallax Snaps. His passion for investigative journalism and a good nose for news brought him into clashes with the government. He endured several instances of arrests and detentions.

Dele held the Sunday Concord position till July 1984 when he co-founded Newswatch, Nigeria’s premier weekly news magazine. He was jointly the Editor-in-Chief and Chief Executive of the magazine until his death in1986.

In addition to being a consummate professional, Dele had a passion for life and an exquisite taste in music. His love for cognac and cuban cigars were complementary to his sartorial elegance. In 1983, a Sunday Concord Newsmaker features magazine named him the 4th best dressed Nigerian.

He was thrice married and had five children, Billy, Dele Jnr, Tunde, Funmi and Ayodele.

He was assassinated on 19th October 1986.

– by Billy Giwa