Lagos bid farewell to veteran journalist and Eagle Online publisher, Dotun Oladipo, at a service of songs held on Thursday, September 10, 2026, at Daystar Christian Centre, Oregun, Ikeja.
The service began at 4 p.m. and drew colleagues, family, and friends for an evening that moved between scripture, song, tribute, and prayer, ahead of interment scheduled for Friday, September 11.
The programme opened with Bible readings from 1 Corinthians 15:51–57 — the well-known passage on mortality and resurrection — read first by Ewaoluwa Oladipo, Dotun’s first daughter, and then a second reading from 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 by his second daughter, Eniola Oladipo.
A special song rendition followed from Reverend Banji Oladipo, Dotun’s brother, before a biography was presented tracing his life and career.
The evening then moved into a series of tributes and messages, closing with family announcements ahead of the following day’s burial.
Among the tributes, the floor was given to Oladipo’s old school mates from AMACOG.
Mr. Ademola Oli spoke on their behalf, describing Dotun as a man that shared a bond that ran deeper than ceremony, a man who carried their association’s responsibilities without complaint, financial or otherwise.
He recalled that Oladipo’s wife was just as devoted to AMACOG as he was, a closeness he called rare.
The tribute leaned into the shock still rippling through the group: his birthday event had reportedly been in the works for December, and instead, the classmates found themselves gathered for his funeral.
The speaker reached for the Yoruba idea of “gbogbo wa a a de ibudo” — that everyone eventually arrives at their own “bus stop” in life — as a way of holding that contradiction.
He closed by calling on AMACOG to keep supporting Oladipo’s widow, Taiwo, and their children, praying that the family’s road ahead would be spared further hardship.
Among his AMACOG friends, Oladipo was affectionately known as “Dotman.”
Later, Pastor Timi Mogaji of Daystar Christian Centre took the pulpit to minister directly to the family.
Where the earlier tributes had leaned on memory and legacy, his message turned toward comfort and theological reassurance.
Pastor Mogaji opened by noting that even without further gestures of support still to come, a person’s good works continue speaking on their behalf.
He expressed confidence that Oladipo would be welcomed into eternity with the words “well done, good and faithful servant.”
Drawing on Second Corinthians 1:3–5, he reminded the congregation that comfort received from God in grief is meant to be passed on to others walking the same road.
Central to his message was a call to reframe memory itself: the last image many held of Oladipo — in weakness or pain — was not his true or lasting state.
The cleric urged mourners to instead picture him as he now was: strong, alive, and whole, having “transitioned” from mortality into immortality, beyond pain, sorrow, or sin.
He closed in prayer over Taiwo and the children, asking that the plans and promises God holds for the family would stand fully, and that whatever news reached the wider community from their household going forward would be good news.
The service of songs marked the close of a day of remembrance before Friday’s interment, which will bring the funeral rites for Dotun Oladipo to a close.
