By Eric Elezuo

His was a life full of adventure. Trained as a marine engineer, but ended up becoming Nigeria’s most sought after media practitioner, who pioneered the trend of private electronic broadcasting, giving Nigerians a breath of fresh air in the choice of radio and television programming. He was High Chief Raymond Anthony Aleogho Dokpesi, the Founder/Chairman, Daar Communications Limited, owners of frontline radio and television stations, Raypower FM and African Independent Television (AIT).

Born on October 25, 1951, High Chief Dokpesi, a man of many positive parts, answered the call of mother nature on May 29, 2023, five months short of his 72nd birthday, as Nigerians were preparing to inaugurate and usher in the new administration of Bola Tinubu, after a fall while exercising to keep fit on his treadmill in his Abuja residence.

The media entrepreneur had earlier survived a stroke just after the Ramadan fasting. He also survived a devastating COVID-19 attack in May 2020.

A businessman of no mean repute, High Chief Dokpesi hailed from Agenebode in Edo State, in a family including six sisters. It is noteworthy that his entrance into the Nigerian mass media industry resulted into a revolution that changed the face of broadcasting till date. He practically paved the way for modern broadcasting in Nigeria, even from an unrelated field of engineering.

Dokpesi’s road to greatness was paved early in life when he started schooling at Loyola College, Ibadan. It was there he received the rudiments of academic pursuit. After his primary education, he attended the Immaculate Conception College (ICC), Benin City, and went the records as the pioneer member of Ozolua Play house, a dance/drama group.

Thereafter, he was admitted into the University of Benin, in the present day Edo State, for his undergraduate studies, but for the matter of exigency, he completed his studies at the University of Gdansk, Poland, and earned his Doctorate degree in Marine Engineering. Reports say his studies, from secondary school to university level, were sponsored by prominent politician, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.

The media businessman started his career as the Personal Assistant to Alhaji Bamaga Tukur, one of the then general managers of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). He also served as a civil servant in the Federal Ministry of Transport under Alhaji Umaru Dikko and General Garba Wushishi in the second republic.

Dokpesi took his ambition a notch higher when the historic National Broadcasting Commission decree came into effect in the early 1990s during the administration of Military President Ibrahim Babangida. The decree allowed private broadcasting in Nigeria. Prior to this time, Nigerian media was dominated by the government only. Information was only made possible by government-owned broadcasting firms.

Dokpesi left his comfort marine engineering zone, and pioneered the first private television network in Nigeria, AIT. The station was also Africa’s first satellite Television station. He had earlier performed the first feat in the radio broadcasting sector. Report again suggests that AIT set the standard for salary structure in the media industry in which the Nigerian owned television outfit copied.

A political enigma, and having been tutored by Bamanga, Dokpesi also dipped his hands in politics. As part of his first political assignments, he became a political campaign manager for the Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, which saw Tukur into the then-Gongola now-Adamawa state government house. He also assumed the same role during Alhaji Adamu Ciroma’s presidential campaign and Tukur’s presidential campaign in 1993, as well as during Peter Odili’s presidential campaign.

He was one of the leaders of the South-South People Assembly (SSPA), an organisation that seeks to promote the welfare of the South South people of Nigeria.

He was the organising committee chairman of the People’s Democratic Party national conference in 2015.

In 2017, he contested for the PDP National Chairmanship position, but did not win.

Dokpesi was not a stranger to awards and honours. His Agenebode hometown conferred two chieftaincy titles upon him, both of which are only bestowed on worthy sons of the land. He also had the singular honour of receiving a mention during the Dr. Kwame Nkrumah Leadership Award ceremony in Accra, and the Foundation for Excellence in Business Practice Geneva, Switzerland for his work with DAAR Communications.

He was a member of the PDP till his death, and had always been.

It is worthy of note that his broadcast organisation and radio station were both named after him. DAAR is his acronym spelled backwards as Raymond Anthony Aleogho Dokpesi with Raypower took the first syllable of his first name, ‘Raymond’.

Dokpesi was buried in hometown, Agenebode, on June 22, 2023, with the who is who in Nigeria politics and media in attendance. Among them were Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State, and Deputy Governor of Edo State, Comrafe Philip Shaibu.

Others were the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; immediate past governor of Delta State, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa; former Edo governor and Senator representing Edo North, Adams Oshiomhole; former Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Ndidi Elumelu; Senator Francis Alimikhena, former Chief of Staff to President Goodluck Jonathan, Mike Ogiadomhe; Senator Ben Oni, Chief Mike Ozekhome SAN, Vice Chairman South South of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Dan Orbih; Chairman, Ovation Media Group, Aare Dele Momodu; representatives of the traditional institution, religious leaders, among others.

Dokpesi is survived by his wife, Tosin Dokpesi, children and a host of relatives.