By Udoma Udo Udoma

It is with sorrowful spirit that I stand here to say farewell to my good friend, John Neji Chiahemen.

Indeed, since the announcement by the family that John passed away there has been an outpouring of tributes from many friends and professional colleagues, from different parts of the world.

There was also one from the Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari. There is no doubt that John made an impact. He was a pioneer and pace setter in television and print journalism, and in the media generally, and was admired for his brilliance and commitment to excellence and to the highest international standards in whatever he did.

I cannot recall exactly when I first met John, but he came to my attention through a weekly programme he anchored on NTA called ‘Newsweek’.

This was the late 1970’s and the early 1980’s and I had just come back to Nigeria after my university education in the U.K. It was a time of great optimism in Nigeria. We had just put the costly civil war behind us and were flush with oil money. The programmme was further evidence that we were now ready to compete with the best that was on offer anywhere in the world. I never missed the programme and recall remarking to many of my friends that Newsweek was comparable to the best that the BBC and ITN were then offering in quality, content and boldness. It was able to x-ray developments in the country without sparing our leaders from scrutiny.

However, John’s frank and bold analysis and presentations started causing unease amongst the politicians. Matters came to a head when, in 1983, the Shagari Administration removed the highly respected and professional Director General of the NTA, Vincent Maduka, who had been one of John’s protectors, and redeployed him to be an adviser on ‘’frequency allocation” at the Ministry of Communications! A party stalwart was appointed to replace Maduka. The NTA was converted into the political machinery of the ruling party, the NPN, and quickly lost credibility.  An election monitoring programme, which John anchored, called ‘Verdict 83’, was so manipulated by the new authorities that it started being referred to by the populace as ‘VOID 83’.

It was clear to John that his days at the NTA were numbered and he had to get out. Relief came by way of an offer from the international news agency, Reuters, as their first African correspondent based in Lagos. Nigeria’s loss was Africa and the World’s gain as John did exceptionally well serving Reuters throughout Africa, and beyond. After an impressive career in Reuters, he retired in 2009 as bureau chief for Southern Africa based in Johannesburg.

By the time he retired from Reuters he had become one of the best-known journalists on the continent and was in high demand as a consultant. Amongst other things he played a role in getting Arise Television off the ground. One of his last undertakings was a publication sponsored by Afreximbank which documented the history of the inaugural Intra-African Trade Fair. Afreximbank organized the Trade Fair in order to promote connectivity amongst African countries through expanded access to trade information and to create a platform for interactions amongst African businesses. John succeeded in completing the publication before he fell seriously ill and sent me a copy. I was most impressed by the extremely high quality of the production. The theme of the book is particularly reflective of John’s belief and commitment to the greater integration and development of the African continent. John’s dream was of a highly developed Africa that would take its rightful place in the World.

Even though I am a few years younger than John, he always treated me as a mate. We enjoyed each other’s company. No matter where in the world John was (and he was very widely travelled) he always remembered to call me for a catch-up conversation on the political and economic situation in Africa, and in the world, as a whole. As a journalist he was abreast of the latest developments and was extremely well informed. I remember one conversation, when, to my surprise, he informed me that he was in Darfur, trying to make sense of yet another African conflict of brother fighting brother. And since, at that time, he had retired from Reuters I could not understand why he was still drawn to African trouble spots!

I recall the many enjoyable times we had together in Paris, in Abidjan, in London, in Lagos, in Abuja and in Johannesburg. In particular, I remember our memorable trip to visit John in Abidjan when, accompanied by his wife, Chizi, John drove my wife, Sally, and I to see the impressive Basilica of our Lady of Peace, Catholic Cathedral in Yamoussoukro.

John was also my tennis partner. Anytime we caught up with each other we invariably had a game of tennis. We did not mind that our standard of play was not of the highest because we were more interested in the conversation as well as the nice glass of wine that followed our games! And we certainly had lengthy and interesting conversations. I will miss the very many good times we had together.

When I think of John, I think of a very gifted man, with sharp intellect and with keen powers of observation and analysis. I think of a man of integrity and with a self-deprecating sense of humour. Many who worked with him at NTA, at Reuters and the various other organisations with which he was associated, have attested to his professionalism, his leadership qualities, his humanity, his kindness, and his humility and, most importantly his commitment to excellence.

John was also a family man. He was devoted to his wife, Chizi, and to his children, Ide, Fanen and Mimi and the latest addition to the family, his grandson, Finley.  

On behalf of my wife, Sally and I, I wish to, once more, convey our heartfelt condolences to all the members of the Chiahemen family. I would also like to extend our condolences to his son in law, Ben, as well as his brother, Tom and all his other brothers and sisters, as well as his many relatives in Benue, his in-laws in Kenya, and friends throughout the world. Please be consoled by the fact that John led an impactful life and achieved so much.

Farewell John. Farewell my good friend. Farewell. Till we meet to part no more. May your soul rest in perfect peace in the bosom of the Lord.

Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, former Minister of Budget and National Planning delivered this tribute at the funeral of John Neji Chiahemen, renowned international Journalist and former African Bureau Chief/Editor of Reuters in Johannesburg, South Africa 15^th September, 2022.