By JACOB AJOM

It was supposed to be a solemn occasion; a time to reflect on the sweet memory of one of the most flamboyant sports journalists of his time who was felled by the cold hands of death at his prime. Yet Emeka Enechi who passed on in August 2010 achieved a personality that dwarfed most of his forerunners’.

He rose to become a young sports editor while working with Thisday Newspapers. As a young adventurous reporter, Enechi left Thisday to become one of the founding directors of Sportsday, a sports daily based in Lagos. Until his unfortunate death about two weeks after a minor auto crash, Enechi was the director of marketing with the publishing company.

He left behind a young wife, Uju and two little daughters. This prompted the late Emeka’s friends and professional colleagues to set up what is today known as the Emeka Enechi Trust Fund, run by the Emeka Enechi Foundation.

Exactly one year after. The foundation organised the First Emeka Enechi Memorial Lecture with the theme: Beyond Sports Journalism.

The lecture which had a former sports writer, Davies Iyasere who is now head of Corporate Communications, Nigeria Insurers Association and Olumide Onitan of First Securities Trusties Limited as resource persons was chaired by veteran journalist and chairman of the Editorial Board, Vanguard Newspapers, Ikeddy Isiguzo.

Predictably, Iyasere handled the first session which delved on the necessity of insurance in the life of a career professional who at some point in his life, will bow out of his normal routine and go into retirement. Aside peaceful retirement, even while in active service, the unexpected – death – could intervene and terminate one’s life. There could also be injury that could cause partial or permanent disability.

As he rose from his chair to speak, he started by asking a question. “How many of you hold life insurance policies?” It was intriguing to find a solitary finger raised in the far corner of the hall – predominantly made up of sports writers.

Astonished by the low level of awareness or deliberate negligence on the part of his colleagues, Iyasere confessed, “I can understand because I was a sports writer too, and I never had an insurance policy either. But it is very bad. I hope by the end of this lecture, a lot of us would have a change of mind.”

Iyasere looked to his left, saw Uju, Enechi’s widow, who was also on the high table, alongside the chairman of the occasion and other guests and said, journalists and everybody, for that matter need to take up one form of insurance or the other, especially a life insurance policy.
“The benefits are enormous,” Iyasere started.”Anybody who wants his family’s comfort in his absence caused by death or any eventuality, an insurance policy can provide that desired relief.”

Iyasere added that even when one is still alive, an insurance policy holder can meet the insurance company to solve an immediate financial problem on request. “Start a life policy of about N10m today and you pay a monthly premium of N15,000 or even N10,000.

It is not compulsory that your premium must get to the N10m mark before your beneficiaries can be indemnified. If you die even in the first week of your taking the policy, the whole N10m will be given to your beneficiaries. Your children’s education will not suffer. That is the magic of insurance.”

He said that the problem most Nigerians have with taking up insurance policies is not because thay cannot afford the premium but because of fears of settlement of claims. “Nigerians are generally skeptical towards insurance companies,” he said, but quickly pointed out that “the days of insincerity in the insurance industry – if there were any – are over. The level of competition and bad press will kill any company that fails in its duty to indemnify genuine beneficiaries of any policy.” In addition, the speaker said there were existing laws that make it mandatory for companies to ensure insurance policies for their staff.

Iyasere also had some words for employers of labour. Quoting from the provisions of the Nigerian Insurance Act, he said employers of labour are under statutory obligation to insure their staff against accidental death, workman compensation in event of injury or permanent disability. Any employer with more than five staff on his payroll must take a group insurance policy for the staff. “Ignorance and lack of interest is the bane of  Nigerian employers and their employees,” he concluded.

After his presentation, the hall erupted in awe, as a lot of the attendants admitted to the essence of insurance cover for career people.

In his remark, Chairman of the occasion, Ikeddy Isiguzo said in addition to preparing for the proverbial rainy day, as listeners are wont to narrow the meaning of the theme of the lecture to life after active journalism, it was a also challenge to modern day sports writer to expand the scope of his vocation and provide something new in that aspect of journalism. “We must strive to take sports journalism to new heights and do those things the people were not used to getting from us,” he said.

Olumide Onitan of First Securities Trusties Limited took his turn. Like Iyasere, he began with a question. “How many of you have a will?” he bellowed. The mention of ‘will’ was greeted with dreadful looks that made it sound like a morbid thought, a mundane pastime. He then advised that every individual must have a written will. “This is the only guarantee to peaceful resolution of issues relating to inheritances after one’s death.”

A will written must be kept secret as any leak would require amendment. He also said that wills should be updated as a person acquires more assets. For a peaceful family in the after life of its breadwinner, the benefactor requires a will which will be executed by his attorney.

In an emotion-ladden speech, widow of the late Emeka Enechi, Uju thanked all, particularly the Emeka Enechi Trust Fund and Lagos SWAN for making the event possible. Mrs Uju Enechi said she would stand by those virtues which her late husband stood for as she sang a chorus … “what a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins, grieves to bear …” She said she had found a lot of strength in Jesus. Tears flowed down cheeks as she sang. That was the emotional side of the successful event.

The event took place at the Lagos SWAN Secretariat to sensitize active journalists on the need to invest in their families in case of death.