Barely one year after the demise of the ace broadcaster Onwa Ikenna Ndaguba Alalade was interred, his colleague, the veteran broadcaster, Bode Alalade, has gone to meet his ‘good friend’ as he too died on Tuesday at his home in the Ogudu GRA, Lagos, at 75 years.
He was a veteran broadcaster and former General Manager NTA 7, Lagos. And in his several decades in broadcasting, Otunba Alade exhibited great versatility and intellectualism. He was a presenter, newsreader/caster producer, writer and great administrator.
Admired for his heavy voice, Alalade was a quintessential newcaster, especially on the 9pm network news on the NTA. His contemporaries were Eugenia Abu, Ikenna Ndaguba, Sienne Allwell Brown, among others. Alalade joined the National Broadcating Corporation (NBC) in 1973 and spent several years both as an on air personality, casting the news for over 30 million listeners/viewers.
He was born in Ibadan, Oyo State on July 14, 1937. He had his education at Princess School and Government School in Lagos. St. Peter’s School, Aremo, Ibadan, Hussey College, Warri, 1952-56; Ibadan Grammar School 1957-58, Fourah Bay College, Sierra Leone; the University College, Sierra- Leone, 1961-64; University of London, 1968-69 and the University of Lagos 1986-87.
Otunba Alalade was not only one of Nigeria’s broadcasting legends, but also a passionate teacher— former high school teacher, college lecturer and TV and Radio broadcast journalism trainer— with a flair for grooming aspiring journalists.
He was quoted as saying: “I love teaching, it’s my passion. And that is why I don’t want these things to die,” an indication of his commitment to cultural preservation, rural community development, historical documentation and ensuring that knowledge is transferred from the older to the younger generation.