Veteran journalist and trailblazer, Dr. Doyin Abiola, former Managing Director and Publisher of National Concord newspaper, is dead. She passed away at exactly 9:15 p.m. on Monday after an illness, family sources confirmed.
Dr. Abiola, wife of the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, publisher of the Concord titles and winner of the annulled June 12, 1993 presidential election, was widely celebrated as the first Nigerian woman to edit a daily newspaper.
Born in 1943, Doyin Abiola earned a degree in English and Drama from the University of Ibadan in 1969 and began her journalism career at the Daily Sketch newspaper, where she wrote a popular column, “Tiro,” tackling social, political, and gender issues. In 1970, she left for the United States to pursue a master’s degree in Journalism.
Upon her return, she joined the Daily Times as a features writer, rising to become Group Features Editor. She later earned a PhD in Communications and Political Science from New York University in 1979. She returned to Daily Times and served on its editorial board alongside distinguished journalists such as Stanley Macebuh, Dele Giwa, and Amma Ogan.
Dr. Abiola was later invited to become the pioneer editor of the newly established National Concord newspaper, before her promotion in 1986 to Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief, making her the first Nigerian woman to hold that position in a daily newspaper. Her career at the Concord titles spanned three decades.
She married MKO Abiola in 1981 and stood by him during the turbulent years following the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election, as well as the political and personal tribulations that followed. Beyond her role at National Concord, she served in numerous capacities in the Nigerian media industry, including as Chairperson of the Awards Nominating Panel at the inaugural Nigerian Media Merit Award and as a member of the Advisory Council, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Ogun State University.
A recipient of the prestigious Diamond Award for Media Excellence (DAME) Lifetime Achievement Award, Dr. Abiola was only the second woman to receive the honour. She was also an Eisenhower Fellow in 1986.
Her passing marks the end of an era for Nigerian journalism, where she was revered for her professional excellence, commitment to press freedom, and lifelong efforts to advance the media as a pillar of democracy.
