Multiple award-winning cartoonist, Azeez Ozi Oniya Sanni has died on Monday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, the family said.
Sanni was a popular cartoonist for The Nation Newspaper.
The Nation Southwest Bureau Chief Bisi Oladele was at the deceased’s Ibadan home to condole with his widow and other family members before his body was buried according to Islamic rites.
Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), The Nation Chapel, Musa Odoshimokhe, described the late Sanni as a committed member of the union and showed the commitment in every event that needed members’ participation.
Deputy Editor Daily, Dr Emmanuel Olasedu said: “I commiserate with the family and professional colleagues of a gentleman-cartoonist of The Nation. I pray that God should be with surviving relations and grant him eternal rest.”
Chairman of The Nation Muslim Community, Alhaji Leke Salawudeen, prayed to Allah to pardon the deceased, make Al-Janah Fir’daos his permanent abode, and comfort the family he left behind.
The company’s Legal Counsel, John Unachukwu, wrote: “Sanni, my good friend and ally, just gone the way of all mortals. What a monumental and colossal loss to his immediate family and The Nation family for whom he had won multiple awards!”
“May God give the family the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss. And may your gentle soul rest in peace.”
To Joseph Jibueze, Deputy Daily News Editor of The Nation, the media industry has lost a huge talent.
“He won NMMA Cartoonist of the Year in 2008, 2009, 2010 and DAME Best Editorial Cartoonist of the Year 2009. Azeez was committed to excellence. Just give him an idea of what you want, and he would deliver in no time. May God give the immediate family and all those who know him the needed strength to deal with this sad news,” Jibueze said.