Tribute By Komla Dumor’s Wife, Kwansema

Eighteen years ago, I met a remarkable young man who was intelligent, knowledgeable, confident, eloquent and charming. His name was Komla Dumor. He became the love of my life and one of the best gifts God gave me. It was the Lord who brought us together and He preserved our union till the end.

I met Komla when we were both students at the University of Ghana, Legon. The first time I interacted with him was at a Sociology group discussion and Komla absolutely blew me away with his knowledge and eloquence. I sat and listened to him in awe. In the end, I felt so intimidated that I decided not to participate in any study group he was involved in.

And yet over time, Komla drew me in and gradually won me over. He wooed me with his baritone, velvety voice; he mesmerized me with his cool gait and air of supreme confidence; he continually made me shake with laughter with his great sense of humour and wit. But above all, Komla won me over with his intellect and his dream to pursue an extraordinary life. With his words he painted for me a vision of the future that sounded so glorious, so exciting and fulfilling that I yielded and eventually vowed to him, ’till death do us part.’ We began dating before he embarked on his brilliant career as a journalist, but even then I knew Komla was special and would attain great heights.

Some of my friends at the time asked, “Kwansema, what do you see in this student boyfriend of yours that you chose him over others who appear to have already made it”? And I would say, “Besides the fact that I’m in love with him, Komla is deep. He has something the others don’t have. I believe Komla has the potential to do great things.” And wow, did he deliver, even beyond my wildest dreams!

Just a few months ago I said to him, “Dear, do you know what is even better than lying in the arms of a man you love who is your husband?” He asked, “What?” I replied, “When that man is Komla Dumor.” Oh, I knew what I had! I knew I had a husband who had chalked such immense success that people the world over admired him. I also knew that I was in a position many women coveted. It was a privilege to be a part of his life. The children and I were so proud of his many accomplishments and we basked in the global recognition he received.

Indeed, Komla was a good and loving husband and companion to me and a wonderful father to our children, Elinam, Elorm and Araba. In his unselfish way, he encouraged and supported me to pursue graduate study at Harvard as he had done. As he was so much in the limelight, I remained less visible in order to preserve some privacy and normalcy for the family. He was such a great presence in our lives and my heart aches for my loss and for my children, who have lost a fantastic and devoted father.

Saturday, January 18th 2014 started like a normal Saturday for us. A day the children and I could shut the world out and have Komla to ourselves. A day when he was simply Daddy and my husband. But now that day marks the beginning of a painful and aching void that we still cannot come to terms with. How can Komla be gone? How can he be forever silent? How can he not come walking through the door of our home in the evenings when the kids and I would trip over ourselves to be the first to hug him? How? And yet that morning when I woke up, my prayer was this: “I will trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding. In all my ways I acknowledge Him and He will direct my paths. Lord, I commit my husband and my children into Your hands this day.”

So now I lift up my eyes to the hills — where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let my foot slip, He who watches over me will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is my shade at my right hand; the sun will not smite me by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep my children and I from harm, the Lord will watch over our lives and our coming and going, both now and forevermore.

Komla, I will miss your voice. I will miss that well of wisdom and knowledge that the children and I continually drew on. I will miss our family trips and the jokes and stories you told as we went, in a manner that only you could. We will miss the special family times on Sundays when you made Daddy’s special stir fry and insisted we all sit down at table and use our best dinner plates. It will never never be the same without you. I will carry with me forever precious and many lovely memories of our journey together, through Harvard at Peabody Terrace, to Ghana and then to the United Kingdom.

Thank you for all you did to make the world a better place for us. We love you and miss you terribly. My only consolation now is that you are with the Lord. Till we meet again, Komla, my love, rest in perfect peace.

Your wife, Kwan

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Tribute To A Great Journalist - Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey

A newly created facebook page "Komla Dumor Tributes" has been created with lots of tributes pouring in. The National Chairman of Ghana's "New Patriotic Party" posted this an hour ago.

The New Patriotic Party is saddened by the loss of Komla Dumor, who died suddenly at his London home on Saturday at the age of 41.
Undoubtedly, Komla Dumor was one of the brightest and best journalists our country, and indeed the rest of Africa, has been blessed with over the last decade.
The leadership and entire membership of the party wishes to convey our thoughts, sympathies and prayers to the wife, children and family of Komla Dumor in this time of mourning. We hope you will be consoled by your cherished memories of Komla and be comforted by the presence of family and friends.
Ghana is grateful for his dedication, pride in our country and service to Africa and the world.
It was through hard work and determination that he was, in November 2013, named in the list of 100 most influential Africans, as he established himself as one of the emerging African faces of global broadcasting, who had considerable influence on how the continent is covered. As a presenter on the BBC World News and its "Focus on Africa" programme, Africa's energy and enthusiasm seemed to shine through every story Komla told.
We will miss him dearly and it is our prayer that God grants him rest and safely keeps him in His bosom.
……signed……
Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey
National Chairman

See other tributes from fans in Africa and all over the World HERE

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See Komla Dumor's Recent Facebook Post

Komla Dumor who died just yesterday 18th January, 2014 in his apartment in London posted this in his facebook recently.

God has been v good to me.,last year I experienced a lot of illness ..my BP nearly gave me a stroke but I trod on..waking up at 2am and heading to work..exhausted sometimes..aching in my body a soul..mentally and emotionally drained ..but I kept going ..I smiled for the camera..I volunteered for extra shifts ..I showed respect to my colleagues from directors to the security guards..I took a lot of jealousy driven vicious insults and backstabbing  from petty people without reply..I remain silent in my personal strife and misery..I kept smiling and pushing on to present better and to engage w my audience and increase my following.,long days and frustrating times..but I kept going..through the west gate mall coverage through the Mandela funeral..even when illness had me collapsing I delivered..today my boss the head of television called me for a 1 minute meeting..he said Komla we have decided to make you the anchor presenter for our coverage of the World Cup in Brazil ..we shook hands and I left..I looked to the sky and said thank you Lord for reminding me that you are on my side ..the enemy will be scattered..Selah!Selah! Praise Him..tomorrow is another day.

....and this is another facebook update posted on 12th July, 2012.

A few years ago my colleague Frederica Boswell told me she had a spare ticket to a Lucky Dube concert in London. I am a huge Dube fan but I knew the concert would run late into the night so I turned it down because I was presenting BBC Network Africa that evening.Freddie suggested we go from the concert straight to work. Freddie goes hard like that! I stuck to my guns and missed the concert.Days later Lucky Dube was dead-shot to death-and the interview Freddie did at the concert set the tone for the memorial I presented on the same show .We are just visitors in this world so enjoy the moments with the people who you love and who love you. Work hard but make time for family and for true friends so when you are gone they will think of good times and the stories from your journeys together.

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NEWS: BBC World TV's Komla Dumor Dies At 41

BBC TV presenter Komla Dumor has died suddenly at his home in London at the age of 41, it has been announced. Ghana-born Dumor was a presenter for BBC World News and its Focus on Africa programme.

One of Ghana’s best-known journalists, he joined the BBC as a radio broadcaster in 2007 after a decade of journalism in Ghana.

Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama said on Twitter that his country had lost one of its finest ambassadors.

BBC Global News Director, Peter Horrocks called Dumor a leading light of African journalism who would be deeply missed.

“Komla’s many friends and colleagues across Africa and the world will be as devastated as we are by this shocking news,” Mr Horrocks said in a statement.

“The sympathies of all his colleagues at the BBC are with his family and friends.”

Komla Dumor was born on 3 October 1972 in Accra, Ghana.

He graduated with a BA in Sociology and Psychology from the University of Ghana, and a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard University.

He won the Ghana Journalist of the Year award in 2003 and joined the BBC four years later. From then until 2009 he hosted Network Africa for BBC World Service radio, before joining The World Today programme.

In 2009 Komla Dumor became the first host of Africa Business Report on BBC World News. He travelled across Africa, meeting the continent’s top entrepreneurs and reporting on the latest business trends around the continent.

He interviewed a number of high-profile guests including Bill Gates and Kofi Annan.

Last month, he covered the funeral of former South African President, Nelson Mandela, whom he described as “one of the greatest figures of modern history”.

He anchored live coverage of major events including the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the funeral of Kim Jong-il, the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, the Norway shootings and the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

In his review of 2013, published last month, Dumor said the passing of Mandela was “one of the moments that will stay with me”.

“Covering the funeral for me will always be a special moment. I will look back on it with a sense of sadness. But also with gratitude. I feel lucky to have been a witness to that part of the Mandela story.”

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