Veteran Nigerian journalist and Newswatch magazine co-founder, Dan Agbese, has passed on.
He was 81.
His family confirmed in a statement that the celebrated columnist and editor passed away on Monday morning, November 17, in Lagos.
“We hereby announce the passing away of our husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and mentor: Chief Dan Agbese, the Awan’Otun of Agila. Chief Agbese transited to eternal glory this morning, Monday, November 17, 2025. He was aged 81,” the statement read.
The family explained that it would announce burial arrangements in due course.
“Born May 12, 1944, in Agila, Chief Agbese was a renowned journalist and author, famous for his seminal contributions to journalism practice in Nigeria and renowned for his satirical columns,” it added.
Agbese, renowned for his incisive writing and decades of service in journalism, played a pivotal role in shaping modern investigative reporting and commentary in Nigeria.
“Chief Agbese was one of the founders of the trail-blazing Newswatch magazine and was, until April 2010, its Editor-in-Chief,” his family stated.
He served as editor of The Nigeria Standard and New Nigerian newspapers and was the General Manager of Radio Benue in Makurdi.
Before his passing, he wrote several books and maintained weekly columns in notable newspapers, including the Daily Trust and The Guardian, while running a media consultancy with his friends and colleagues, Ray Ekpu, Yakubu Muhammed and Soji Akinrinade.
He is survived by his wife, Chief Rose Agbese, their six children, and seven grandchildren.
Agbese earned degrees in Mass Communication and Journalism from the University of Lagos and Columbia University, New York, respectively.
He began his career at New Nigerian and The Nigeria Standard newspapers, but his most defining professional achievement came in 1984, when he joined Dele Giwa, Ray Ekpu, and Yakubu Mohammed to launch Newswatch, the pioneering weekly newsmagazine that set the standard for investigative journalism in Nigeria.
Over the years, he held multiple key roles at the magazine, including Managing Editor, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, and Editor-in-Chief.
He was also the author of several acclaimed books, including Nigeria, Their Nigeria, Fellow Nigerians, The Reporter’s Companion, Style: A Guide to Good Writing, and The Columnist’s Companion: The Art and Craft of Column Writing.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.