Former Vice President at the American University of Nigeria, Yola, Dr Abba Abubakar Tahir, has joined teeming Nigerians mourning Chief Timawus Mathias, the late broadcasting guru who hailed from Adamawa State.
Chief Mathias, 73, whose remarkable career climaxed in airing two national TV programmes, Verdict 79 and Verdict 83, died last Thursday (September 8) in Yola, Adamawa State.
The network programmes aired the general election results of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic led by Shehu Shagari. In a condolence message from Konngol SilverTongue which trains speech communication practitioners, Dr Tahir, who headed University Relations at AUN, eulogised the late Chief Mathias as detribalised and exemplary.
“His demise closes a golden era in broadcasting, not only in Adamawa State but also in Northern Nigeria and Nigeria at large,” said the statement.
The statement further described the deceased as “among Nigeria’s generation of broadcasters who defined the path and showed the way.
“All of the foundation pillars in the broadcast industry were laid by his generation, most of whom have exited the world today.
“Chief Mathias rose through the ranks to the pinnacle, traversing reportorial, editorial, news commentary, production, broadcast management, training, and consulting duties. His career activities somehow affected virtually every modern broadcaster in Nigeria.
“As a top-flight consultant, he was largely instrumental in the founding, equipping, and management of countless radio and television stations across the federation.
“Dr Tahir who heads the information directorate of the Adamawa Emirate Council as the first KaaKaaKey practised under Chief Mathias when the latter became the General Manager of the NTA, Yola.
“Chief Mathias was to play a pivotal role in the founding of Konngol. In Tahir’s words, “Chief Mathias would be best remembered for his integrity, discipline, and professionalism… Whenever the history of Nigeria’s radio and television is to be written, his name will surely be in bold print among the greats,” the statement said.
