INEC Appoints Ex-PUNCH Editor, Adedayo Oketola CPS

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN), has approved the appointment of a former Editor of The PUNCH newspaper, Adedayo Oketola, as his Chief Press Secretary.

The appointment followed the exit of Rotimi Oyekanmi, who previously served as CPS to the immediate past INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.

According to a daily bulletin released on Monday by the Editor-in-Chief and Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Victoria Eta-Messi, the appointment was formally conveyed in a letter signed by the secretary to the commission, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, dated Friday, October 24, 2025.

“The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Joash Amupitan SAN, has approved the appointment of Mr. Adedayo Eriye Oketola as his Chief Press Secretary.

“The appointment was officially conveyed in a letter signed by the secretary to the commission, Mrs. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, dated Friday, 24th October 2025,” it read.

The commission noted Oketola’s track record as a “multi-award-winning journalist with nearly two decades of experience,” recognised for his “inclusive reporting and journalistic excellence.”Oketola previously served as News Editor and Business Editor of The PUNCH and was Assistant Editor of News & Politics for Saturday PUNCH.

During his tenure as Editor of The PUNCH, he was named Editor of the Year at the 2023 Nigeria Media Merit Awards, where the newspaper also won the Newspaper of the Year award.

He was similarly honoured as Editor of the Year at The Industry Awards in 2023 and is a two-time recipient of the Zimeo Excellence in Media Awards held in Johannesburg (2015) and Nairobi (2016).

Upon assuming office on Thursday, Amupitan reaffirmed his commitment to integrity, transparency, and discipline in managing Nigeria’s electoral process. Punch

THE MAN ADEDAYO OKETOLA:

Adedayo Eriye Oketola is a multiple award-winning Nigerian journalist, author, and strategic communications expert with over two decades of high-impact experience in journalism, editorial leadership, and media innovation.

He served as Editor of The PUNCH, Nigeria’s most widely read and influential newspaper, from 2022 to 2024, leading it to consecutive Newspaper of the Year wins and earning the Editor of the Year award from the Nigeria Media Merit Awards (NMMA) in 2023, and the Diamond Awards for Media Excellence (DAME) in 2024.

He had earlier served as the Editor of PUNCH Weekend Titles for three years, the first in the 50-year history of the media group to edit both Saturday PUNCH and Sunday PUNCH simultaneously. Before then, he was Group Business Editor of The PUNCH, News Editor of The PUNCH, and News & Politics Editor of Saturday PUNCH.

His outstanding journalism across several beats — including ICT, Energy, labour, business & economy, news & politics —earned him over 15 prestigious local and international awards, fellowships, and recognitions.

He possesses B. A English (Literature) from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife (2004); M.A English (Literature) from the University of Ibadan (2007); Certificate in Investigative Reporting from the New England Centre for Investigative Reporting in Boston University, Massachusetts, United States (2012); LL.B from the National Open University of Nigeria (2017); Diploma in Public Relations from the Business Education Examination Council (2021).

He is an Associate of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON); a member of the Nigerian Institute of Management (Chartered), Nigerian Guild of Editors and Lions Clubs International, District 404B2 Nigeria.

Oketola is an Edward R. Murrow Fellow under the U.S. State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program and currently serves as President, International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) Alumni Association in Nigeria.

His debut book is titled “The Catalyst: Nigerian Tech Evolution Through A Journalist’s Lens,” presented to the public in 2024.

Oketola hosted Nigeria’s first-ever Exaugural Lecture by a newspaper editor to mark his transition from editorship and 20 years of service in journalism.