Veteran broadcaster, business icon, and diplomat Christopher Kolade has died at the age of 93.

The family announced the elder statesman’s death in a statement on Thursday.

According to the statement, the late former Chairman of Cadbury Nigeria Plc died peacefully on Wednesday, October 8, 2025.

Below are the things to know about the elder statesman

Born on December 28, 1932, in Erin-Oke, Osun State, to an Anglican missionary father, Kolade’s early years were shaped by faith, discipline, and learning.

He attended Government College, Ibadan, before proceeding to Fourah Bay College, Freetown, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from one of West Africa’s most prestigious universities.

Broadcasting trailblazer

Kolade began his professional career in the 1950s as an Education Officer in the Western Region. However, following Nigeria’s independence in 1960, he transitioned to broadcasting — a move that would define the early part of his illustrious career.

At the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (now the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Kolade rose through the ranks to become Director-General.

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Those who worked under him remember his professionalism, dignity, and insistence on ethical journalism — qualities that set him apart in Nigeria’s early broadcasting years.

His collaboration with the late Segun Olusola helped lay the foundation for modern television and radio in the country.

Corporate leader

After nearly two decades in broadcasting, Kolade joined Cadbury Nigeria Plc in 1978 as Administration Director. He later became Managing Director, Chief Executive, and eventually Chairman, leading the company through what many described as its “golden era.”

Beyond the corporate boardroom, Kolade was a champion of ethical business practices. He chaired both the Integrity Organisation and The Convention on Business Integrity, long before “corporate governance” became a popular phrase in Nigeria’s business lexicon.

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Teacher, mentor, and voice of values

Even after retiring from corporate life, Kolade continued to shape minds and values.

At the Lagos Business School, he taught Corporate Governance, Human Resource Management, and Leadership, where generations of business executives recall him as a mentor who began each class with questions about values rather than profits.

He later served as Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Pan-Atlantic University, which houses both LBS and the School of Media and Communication, and as Chancellor of McPherson University, Ogun State.

Diplomat and devout Anglican

From 2002 to 2007, Kolade served as Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, earning widespread respect for his diplomacy, humility, and integrity.

A devout Anglican, he received the Order of St Augustine Medal from the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1981 and was later installed as a Lay Canon Emeritus at Guildford Cathedral, United Kingdom. He was also organist and choir director at St Peter’s Church, Faji, Lagos, a testament to his lifelong commitment to faith and service.

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Despite his towering résumé, which includes Fellow of the Institute of Directors, Past President of both the Nigerian Institute of Management and the Institute of Personnel Management, and recipient of the Commander of the Order of the Niger, Kolade remained remarkably humble.

Family life

He was married to Beatrice Egochukwu Ukogu, with whom he had two sons. Those close to him describe him as a devoted husband and father who balanced public duty with family warmth and simplicity.

Kolade’s life was anchored in family, faith, and service — values he lived and passed on to all who encountered him.
Enduring Legacy

In business circles, Kolade will be remembered as a leader of principle, while in academia, as a mentor who shaped minds with moral clarity and in diplomacy, as an envoy who carried Nigeria’s name with dignity.

Human rights and environmental activists have pushed for the popularisation of words such as #Ogonize’, #Sarowiwize’; #Shikokize’, #Aigbuhaenze’,
#Awua’, #Brasinize’ #Adanegberize’, #Otogize’, amongst others, in the campaign for human and climate justice.

The activists, including Edo State former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr. Osagie Obayuwana; Interim Administrator, Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), Rita Uwaka; Programme Manager, Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), Innocent Edemhanria; Comrade Cynthia Bright, Executive Director, Grassroots Women Empowerment and Development Organisation (GWEDO), amongst others spoke at a programme organised by Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) with the theme: Birthing Words for Campaigns.

Speaking on the origin of the words and their usages, the activists said #Sarowiwize’ was derived from an environmental activist name, Ken Saro-Wiwa, which means ‘community mobilising for environmental justice; remembrance of hero in environmental justice,’ and that #Ogonize’ simple means ‘struggle for environmental justice.’

Saro-Wiwa led a nonviolent campaign against environmental degradation of the land and waters of Ogoniland by the operations of the multiple international oil companies, especially the Royal Dutch Shell Company, was tried by a special military tribunal for allegedly masterminding the murder of Ogoni chiefs at a pro-government meeting, and hanged in 1995 by the military dictatorship of General Sani Abacha.

According to the activists,
#Chikokize’, means a ‘collective struggle; struggle for impacted communities, mangrove and workers.’

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They explained that, #Aigbuhaenze, which was derived from a Benin word means: ‘Do not pollute the water or do not compromise the source or collective welfare for generations to come,’ while #Adanegberize, which was also derived from a Benin word means ‘care for each other even in the struggle.’

They further explained that #Awua’, was also derived from a Benin word, meaning: ‘it is forbidden – economic injustice is forbidden.’

According to them, #Brasinize’ was derived from an Ijaw word, meaning ‘leave the resources in the soil,’ while #Otogize’ was derived from a Yoruba word which means ‘enough is enough for oil extraction.’

The activists, who emphasised the need for the popularisation of these new words, stressed that words, if appropriate applied, are powerful, and could drive authority to speedy action.

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In his opening remarks, Executive Director, HOMEF, Dr. Nnimmo Bassey, emphasised the need for activists to create new words in their campaign for environmental justice, saying these words can move authorities concerned to speedy action.

According to Bassey, words can be obscure and can also mobilise for environmental struggle if appropriately used.

In his key note address, a language expert, and consultant for Oxford Dictionaries on review of lists of Nigerian English words for possible inclusion, Dr. Kingsley Ugwuanyi, described words as action and powerful.

“When we speak, we are not just describing the words, but we are also acting in it. Because words are action, and words do things,” he said.

The translator and lexicographer, English-Igbo dictionary, and English Language consultant & tutor,
iTutor Group, Taiwan, said
words could shift the struggle for environmental justice, revealing that if these words are repeatedly used for 10 years, they could be considered for inclusion in the Oxford Dictionary.

The Lamido Adamawa, Dr Muhammadu Barkindo Mustapha has partnered with the
National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), Northeast Zonal Centre, under the Office of the National Security Adviser to President Bola Tinubu to curtail the menace of the proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons in the country.

Speaking when the Northeast Zonal Director of NCCSALW, Maj:-Gen. Abubakar Adamu (Rtd) paid him a courtesy visit on Tuesday, the Emir said that the roles of the traditional rulers in fighting the proliferation of small Arms and light weapons in the country could not be overemphasized.

He promised that he would do everything within his power to support the centre in sensitizing the people on the dangers associated with the proliferation of illicit arms and weapons as well as putting an end to it.

He seeks for the support and cooperation of all traditional leaders in the state to join the centre in tackling the menace of the proliferation of these arms and weapons in their various communities.

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Earlier speaking, Maj:-Gen. Abubakar Adamu (Rtd), said the collaboration with the traditional institutions and all stakeholders would go a long way in curtailing the menace of the proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) in the country.

The Zonal Director explained that the Centre was working in collaboration with all stakeholders in the country to mop up all SALW for onward destruction.

According to him, the Centre has been mandated by the federal government to prosecute any individual involved in the proliferation of illicit weapons in the country and is therefore seeking for more support and collaboration from all stakeholders in the country.

Similarly, the centre paid a courtesy visit to the Commissioner of Police in the state, CP Dankombo Morris for more collaboration and synergy where Adamu explained that the visit was part of a sensitization tour to introduce the mandate of the Centre, which is focused on curbing the proliferation of SALW across the North East.

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He sought the continued support and cooperation of the Command to achieve the giant stride of mopping up all illegal weapons from circulation through collection and destruction.

Responding, the Commissioner of Police pledged to collaborate with the centre in the fight against the proliferation of illicit arms and light weapons.

He further reaffirmed the Command’s readiness to work closely with the Centre to rid the State of illegal firearms and ensure public safety.

The centre also met with the Director, State Security Service, Barthalomew Omoaka, who promised to support the centre especially in intelligence sharing which he said was paramount in preventing the proliferation of these weapons.