Death is a fact of life, no living thing exists forever, not even nature itself, for it is written that even the best and the brightest, shall pass to the Great Beyond, to become one with Nature and the Grand Architect, to be remembered on this side of the Divide, thereafter by their deeds. And so here we are, in the past few days, in the communications and ideas community, mourning the passing of Patrick Dele Cole, known variously as P.D. Cole, or PDC, 1940 -2026, who died in London on October 17, 2026, at the ripe age of 86. He was a historian, administrator, newspaper columnist, an author, politician, a manager of resources, and one of the most outstanding figures in contemporary Nigerian journalism who lived a life of impact and influence and has now left behind a legacy and a leverage that shine luminously upon him beyond his own humble beginnings.
The death of a public intellectual: Patrick Dele Cole, 1940–2026, By Reuben Abati
