By Funmilayo Akinyemi
Dr. Doyin Okupe, who died in the early hours of Friday, March 7, 2025, was a renowned Nigerian physician and politician.
He died 15 days to his 73rd birthday anniversary, having being born on March 22, 1952, in Iperu Ijebu, Ogun State.
His father was Chief Matthew Adekoya Okupe, a renowned banker with Agbonmagbe Bank.
Doyin Okupe’s siblings were Kunle Okupe, Owo Okupe, Wemi Okupez Larry Okupe, Aina Okanlawon and Bisola Ayeni.
He attended St. Jude’s Primary School, Ebute Metta, Lagos; Igbobi College in Yaba, Lagos; and Nigeria’s premier University, University of Ibadan in Ibadan, Oyo State, Where He studied medicine.
Career
Okupe worked as a medical doctor for some years for government and private hospitals, including St. Nicholas Hospital, Lagos.
He co-founded the Royal Cross Medical Centre (also known as Royal Cross Hospital), located in Obalende, Lagos, along with Dr. Seyi Roberts and Dr. Ladi Okuboyejo.
He was the Medical Director (MD) of Royal Cross Medical Centre.
Political career
Dr. Doyin Okupe was a candidate of the House of Representatives on the platform of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), during Nigeria’s Second Republic.
During the Third Republic, Okupe served as the National Publicity Secretary of National Republican Convention (NRC).
He was one of the representatives of the NRC that observed the collation of the 1993 Nigerian presidential election results at the headquarters of the National Electoral Commission (NEC).
The General Sani Abacha military government detained
Okupe was on October 3, 1996, detained by the military government of late Nigeria’s maximum ruler, General Suni Abacha.
He was among the politicians who were disqualified in March 1998 from participating in United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP) primaries, during the aborted transition programme of Abacha.
At the advent of the current Fourth Republic, Okupe was appointed Special Assistant (Media and Publicity) to President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He was became a governorship aspirants of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in 2002 and was a major contender along with Gbenga Daniel.
President Goodluck Jonathan appointed Okupe as his Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs in 2012.
He also served as spokesman at various times to Nigerian presidential aspirants of the PDP, including former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan; Bukola Saraki and Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
In July 2017, he announced his decision to leave the PDP to join the Accord Party, which later expelled him in 2018 when he accepted to be the Chairman of the Campaign Media Council of Bukola Saraki for the 2019 presidential primaries of the PDP.
He subsequently returned to the PDP, and became a spokesman of the Presidential Campaign Organisation of Atiku Abubakar, the PDP candidate for president in the 2019 Nigerian presidential election.
Close to the general elections of 2023, Okupe joined the Labour Party and stood in as the running mate and vice presidential candidate of the party until a substantive candidate was picked.
Dr. Doyin Okupe was married to Aduralere Okupe with two children.
