MKO Abiola’s wife, Doyin, passes on at 82

Dr. Doyin Abiola, former Managing Director and Publisher of National Concord Newspaper and wife of the late business mogul, MKO Abiola, has passed on.

She passed away on August 4 at 82.

She was one of the early vibrant and well read woman journalist.

Family source said that she passed on at exactly 9.15 pm Nigerian time on Monday during old age illness.

She was the first Nigerian woman to be an editor of a Nigerian daily newspaper.

Doyin Abiola was educated at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria where she earned a degree in English and Drama in 1969. After graduation, she started work with the Daily Sketch Newspaper. During this period, she started writing a column in the newspaper called ‘Tiro,’ which was addressing sundry issues of public concern, including gender matters. In 1970, she left Daily Sketch Newspaper and travelled to the United States to pursue a master’s degree programme in Journalism. Upon her return, she was employed as a features writer at Daily Times and rose to become the Group Features Editor. She later went to New York University and obtained a PhD in communications and political science in 1979

She joined the newly formed National Concord newspaper at its inception. She then moved to be an editor of National Concord. She was promoted to be the managing director/editor-in-chief in 1986. She became the first Nigerian woman to become the editor in chief of a daily newspaper in Nigeria. She married in 1981.

Her career at National Concord Newspaper spanned three decades.

Family source said funeral arrangements will be announced later.