Renowned veteran journalist and former chairman of the Editorial Board of the New Nigerian Newspapers in Kaduna, Alhaji Abdulhamid Babatunde Agaka is dead. He died in Kaduna in his sleep last night, July 27 at the age of 66.
It was gathered that the seasoned journalist cum editor, who had lost his wife last month, died in his sleep at his residence in Kaduna.
He joined the service of the New Nigerian newspapers, the pioneer Northern newspaper based in Kaduna, in 1974 and rose through the ranks to become Chairman of its Editorial Board, from where he moved to another Kaduna-based newspaper, The Democrat newspaper published by late Malam Ismaila Isa Funtua as its Editor in 1988, till 1997.
He was born on February 26, 1956 and attended Capital School Kaduna, before proceeding to Barewa College Zaria and Government Secondary School Ilorin.
Abdulhamid Babatunde Agaka, in the bid for excellence in Journalism, attended several media trainings, workshops and conferences at home and abroad, and was an alumnus of the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos.
The late veteran journalist also held executive positions in the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), where he was a Fellow.
Alhaji Abdulhamid Babatunde Agaka, who was once the Secretary of the Jokolo Committee set up by then President Olusegun Obasanjo, in 1999, is survived by four children: Ahmad, Maryam, Halima and Abdulhamid (Jnr).
He is also survived by other siblings including Mallam Ismail Ila Agaka, a former Managing Director of Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) and Ilyasu Baba Agaka, a Director at the Presidency among others.
Babatunde, renowned for his trenchant articles recently wrote about the seemingly endless war against Boko Haram and other security challenges.
It was learnt that his last article was widely read by policy, security and security top notchers. Some of those who read it actually called to commend Babatunde for his “patriotic” write-up.
We, in Greenbarge Reporters online newspaper, particularly the Editor-In-Chief/Chief Executive Officer, Yusuf Ozi Usman, were shocked at the death of Abdulhamid Babantunde. He was one of the mentors of Yusuf Ozi-Usman, who worked under him in Kano, when he (late Babatunde) was the State Editor of the New Nigerian newspapers. We condole with those he left behind, especially, his children.
