Journalist Abdul Aziz Onile laid to rest
The media fraternity, friends and family members on Tuesday paid their last respects to Radio Islam’s veteran journalist Abdul Aziz Onile who they described as free spirited.
Hundreds of mourners descended on Mdenga Village in the area of Chief Kalembo in Balaka District for their final send off to Onile who succumbed to meningitis at Chiradzulu District Hospital.
The long-serving journalist died around 3am on Tuesday while receiving treatment at the health facility and was laid to rest the same day.
Onile’s death comes a few months after the media fraternity lost two prominent and authoritative journalists in Nation Publications Limited (NPL) former managing editor Edward Chitsulo and Ralphael Tenthani, a BBC correspondent.
Radio Islam station manager Yusufu Chinyada described Onile’s death as a huge loss to the institution for his hard working spirit.
Scores of tributes have been pouring in for the fallen journalist through the Media Institute for Southern Africa (Misa) Malawi chapter google group for Malawian journalists.
“I knew him quite well; a home mate and we started our journey in this noble profession [media] almost at the same time. May God comfort us all and rest his soul in perfect peace,” mourned Chikondi Juma, presidential press Officer at State House.
On his part, Misa Malawi chairperson Thom Khanje condoled the deceased family, Radio Islam and the entire media fraternity adding: “I have personally interacted with him several times and he was such a kind and good man.”
According to Onile Ali, the deceased’s elder brother, the departed journalist was born in 1975 and is survived by a wife and four children.
Onile ventured into journalism in the early 2000s and freelanced for different media houses before settling at Radio Islam where he was a senior journalist. n
