Ahead of its 40th birthday anniversary in July this year Guardian Newspapers Limited, has announced restructuring of its editorial and management operations. In a statement signed yesterday by the Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief, Mr. Martins Oloja, the Chairman of the Board and Publisher of the Newspaper, Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru, has approved the appointment of Dr Oluwafemi Adekoya, the Business Editor as Editor of The Guardian. He replaces Mr Alabi Williams who has been reassigned to the Editorial Board as a member of the intellectual wing of the newspaper chaired by Professor Wale Omole, former Vice Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile Ife.
In the new deal aimed at rejigging the executive management, Mrs Patience Ilesanmi, Head of Finance has been appointed as Chief Financial and Operating Officer.
Oluwafemi Adekoya, the Editor (daily) of The Guardian, Nigeria and member of the Editorial Board since 2022, joined the flagship of the Nigerian Press as an intern in 2003 and rose through the ranks as Assistant Editor, Business to Business Editor before this appointment as Editor, The Guardian daily. Over the years he has had the opportunity of covering a range of business-related news including energy, micro-finance, small businesses, entrepreneurship, manufacturing, agri-business and political economy. He is a multi-skilled, result-orineted, ethical professional with broad deep experience across journalism and marketing communications with a track record of proven experience. The new Editor of The Guardian is well grounded in the theory and practice of modern journalism.
A resourceful reporter and writer, who has been described twice as one of the young scholars in The Guardian newsroom by the newspaper’s managing Director and Editor-in-Chief in the yearly Person-of-The-Year essay writing, in which he has participated twice, has to his honour a towering academic profile. He earned his PhD from the prestigious Nigeria’s premier university, the University of Ibadan. With a specialty in media economy and marketing communications, he focused his thesis on information subsidy and its impact on the agenda setting function of the Nigerian media. He holds a M.A (with honours) in Communication and Language Arts, of the University of Ibadan and a Bachelor’s degree from the same University(UI). He is also an alumnus of the Pan-Atlantic University where he studied entrepreneurship. He has certifications in online journalism, peace journalism and advertising, among others.
Dr. Adekoya began his journey into journalism at the Lagos State Polytechnic with a National Diploma in Mass Communication. He proceeded to the Polytechnic Ibadan for his Higher National Diploma (HND).
Dr Adekoya, who is passionate about social justice, continuous learning, economic development and social transformation in Nigeria and Africa, has through his reporting and writings, promoted causes and initiated a shift in government’s reforms. He was nominated in 2014 twice for the Nigeria Media Merit Award (NMMA) where he emerged first-runner-up in Industry and Tourism Reporting, Trade and Investment award for industry reporting.
Mrs Patience Ilesanmi, the new Chief Finance and Operating Officer brings to her new job a rich soft and hard skills in financial and management reporting and forensic audit as a chartered accountant. A former Senior Auditor (2008-2015) with BBc Professionals (Chartered Accountants), Audit Manager (2015-2017 at the Bc Nwankwo & Co.(Chartered Accountant), Head Audit (2017-2019) at the Tryphena & Tryhosa (Nig. Ltd, has been The Guardian, Head of Finance since 2019. Mrs Ilesanmi earned her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. She capped that with an MSc, Finance from the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago –Iwoye, Ogun State. An associate member (ACA) of the Nigeria Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria (ICAN), a certified chartered accountant, is also a Fellow Nigeria Institute of Management (FNIM) where she has a certificate in financial management.
The Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief while said last night that the restructuring will “be a continuous exercise aimed at repositioning the newspaper within the construct of the political economy of press freedom in the 21stcentury”.
