Gbolabo Ogunsanwo, ace journalist, is dead

Gbolabo Ogunsanwo, a renowned journalist, is dead.

Ogunsanwo, former editor of defunct Sunday Times and celebrated columnist, was said to have died on Friday in Lagos after a brief illness.

Paying condolence to the deceased journalist, Dapo Abiodun, governor of Ogun state, said Ogunsanwo carried himself with dignity and was considered as the conscience of modern Nigeria.

The governor, in a statement by Kunle Somorin, his spokesman, said Ogunsanwo rose to the peak of his career as the “first editor to hit one million copies in sales per edition”.

“He really exemplified excellence, courage and forthrightness, which our state is known for. Indeed, he was a role model that nurtured many reporters who have also become legends in pen-pushing and leaders in other spheres,” Abiodun said.

“He was a humourist. His writings were both intellectually and scholarly sound. He died on Friday in Lagos on his way to the hospital. He was the editor of the Sunday Times and also acting editor of The Daily Times in 1974.

“During his time as the editor, the paper was selling between 950,000 and one million copies in a day. It was unprecedented.

“We would miss him. The media industry has lost a colossus.”