Monrovia – Ranking family members of fallen Liberian Journalist, Fanta Sulamane Diakite on Friday, September 17, 2016 paid a courtesy call on President Ellen Johnson at her Foreign Ministry Office in Monrovia.

According to an Executive Mansion release, a Special statement of thanks and appreciation, read by Ambassador Brahima Kaba was presented to the Liberian leader as a mark of gratitude and respect for standing by the family during the passing of Journalist Fanta Sulamane Mamadee Diakite.

“Madam President, through you, we wish to extend our sincere gratitude to the Vice President, Minister of Information and other officials of government, the Press Union of Liberia as well the Liberian people for their overwhelming demonstration of solidarity, sympathy and condolence over the passing of our beloved departed Mamadee”, the statement pointed out.

The statement further acknowledged that Mamadee built his short but exemplary legacy of true investigative journalism devoid of partisanship and biases based on a strong institution of press freedom and freedom of expression by the Sirleaf-led government.

The family noted that such qualities brought recognition from both the upper echelons and grass-roots of the Liberian society as well as from the international media.

The statement concluded by calling on young Liberian media professionals to emulate Mamadee’s examples so as to continue the valuable contribution in strengthening Liberia nascent democracy.

President Sirleaf thanked the Diakite family for the recognition but pointed out that the fallen media professional deserved the honor he received in death.

She repeated her assertion that Mamadee was a professional journalist who combined his qualities with a great sense of patriotism and nationalism.

“Mamadee was a professional who demonstrated love for country and unwavering with commitment to portray the motherland positively. He was very confident and hopeful about Liberia’s prosperity and future and we will forever remember him for that”, President Sirleaf reflected.

She reiterated her support for Mamadee’s family, particularly his young children, widow and aged mother.

“We will always keep in touch to ensure the wellbeing of his family left behind and will urge our officials to personally support the Trust Fund established to support his family.

The delegation included Madam Fanta Diakite (mother), Alpha Diakite (brother), Kadiatu Diakite-Kaba (cousin), Associate Justice Kabineh Janneh (relative) and Ambassador Brahima Kaba (family leader).

Monrovia – President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has said Fanta Mamadee Diakite will be remembered as a professional journalist and identified the media as one of the most powerful force” in any society.

According to an Executive Mansion release, President Sirleaf made the remarks at a memorial service on Saturday, September 3, 2016 at the Monrovia City Hall when she joined family members, relatives and friends of the late Mamadee Diakite.   

President Sirleaf said when the media is used wisely and responsibly it would impact and benefit any society. The Liberian leader said responsibility requires that one shows love for the nation.

President Sirleaf furthered that when the story of Liberia is told, the name of Mamadee Diakite will not be forgotten because according to her, he made tremendous contributions to the media landscape in Liberian media.

She said as a professional journalist, the late Mamadee Diakite stood for certain principles and will be remembered for the love of his country.

The death of Mamadee Diakite, one of the fiercest talk show hosts of our generation came as a great surprise to many especially those of us who interacted with him in the last days of his life.

There can be no doubt, that Mr. Diakite whose presence in the Liberian media landscape was relatively new, left an indelible mark in the practice of journalism which he cherished, promoted and defended according to the best of his ability.

Perhaps the most striking aspect of Mr. Diakite’s journalism career was his firmness against social injustice, his love for the truth and the ability to express this without fear or favor made him a towering figure among his contemporaries.

Clearly, Mr. Diakite ability to search for truth and only truth, for the benefit of humanity placed him in an enviable but difficult situation. But he defied the threat of intimidation which often serve as obstacle for freedom of expression and decency. In effect, Mr. Diakite understood the environment in which he operated and therefore equipped himself in the armor of legal knowledge to meet the challenges of our time.

Yet, the late Diakite was a man full of confidence and vision not only to realize his God’s given potentials, but also to contribute to the growth and development of his beloved country Liberia in which he had enormous faith that with the right leadership coupled with collective patriotism, Liberia’s progress was irreversible.

Indeed, Mr. Diakite’s loyalty to Liberia was unquestionable. He repeatedly used the phrase “The Mother Land is getting better” to assure the listening audience that despite the inadequacies in our national life occasioned by frequent political wrangling among different interest groups, there is a window of opportunity for Liberians to consolidate peace and build upon the progress made over the years.,/p>

Admittedly, Mr. Diakite’s message was not welcomed in some quarters. Consequently, he became a target for verbal assault and names calling ostensibly to dissuade him from shedding light on societal ills that threaten to reverse gains made over the years.

Soon, it became clear that the man Diakite was a man of his own world who did not only delve into national discourse for the sake of argument, but rather his thoughts were deeply rooted in conviction that national questions can only be effectively addressed when we agree to dislodge ourselves of the prejudices and hatred while recognizing that the common denominator which is Liberia is placed above all else.

Defending such principles as Mr. Diakite did, is a task every conscientious journalist should endeavor to protect and promote at all times.

As we reflect on the many contributions made by Mr. Diakite in the course of his journalistic sojourn, one cannot, but rejoice over the out pouring of tributes to his memory by people from all walks of life who gathered at his residence to pay their last respects. This is a testament that the late Diakite who appears detested by the tiny minority, was immensely appreciated by the majority.

And as the books of condolence being opened by the family and the Press Union of Liberia respectively, let us use the occasion to celebrate Mamadee’s life and remember all the fallen Liberian journalists who variably played their parts in moving the country forward. Rest in Peace my dear friend.

Abu Kamara,
Former Director of News, Truth FM

On the morning of August 30, 2016, after having two hours of extra-curricular study, I decided to log into Facebook to ramble through some of the educative, informative, and entertaining posts from some of the brilliant brothers and sisters who dedicate their time to uploading information that are germane to the growth and development of the motherland. Upon my arrival on Facebook, I read with 100% skepticism the passing of a patriotic journalist and erudite talk show host- Attorney Mamadee Fanta Sulaimani Diakite.

I could not believe the shocking news of a patriot demise, because his last time on the radio, he sounded high-spirited, and full of life. There was no report of a sign or symptom indicating that Brother Mamadee was not in the right frame of health.

The only thing abnormal of him that I knew of was the terrible flight he experienced on Air Morocco while returning from the U.S. where he went to see his newly born baby girl. Despite such disappointment, I could still hear him in his noble nationalistic and optimistic tune: “The motherland will never fall; trust me, Liberia is getting better”. Regardless of the inevitability of death, I did not believe that God could take such a decent soldier away from our generation at this time.

I took the social media’s news of Mr. Diakite’s passing as one of the many propaganda rants usually spewed at him because of where he stood in the national discourse. He was an ally of the status quo. He was critical of the opposition that stands as an alternative to the power that be.

For this, he was met by many counter-lambasting from leaders and supporters of opposition political parties. I read through the perceived inane post and asked myself, “Can one gain political capital by ridiculously announcing on social media the demise of his/her political adversary?”.

By 7:00AM, my disbelieve about the news of Brother Mamadee giving up the ghost was finally defeated when I listened to ELBC’s News Half Hour announced in its headlines the death of a great fighter who regardless of where he stood politically fought in the national interest of the motherland. Like many Liberians, my heart is broken; my heart is bleeding; I am a militant, but I can’t hold back the tears. The demise of Atty. Diakite is a leakage to our emerging democracy.

Yes, he brought sense to the discourse. He replaced perceptions with facts. He ran with the conviction that irrespective of the many challenges our country faces today, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Brother Fanta Diakite preached peace; he was an ambassador of ethical journalism. He introduced many new phenomena to talk show hosting, and radio broadcasting. In spite of where Mamadee stood in the national political debate, he was very tolerant of his oppositions’ views.

He accommodated civility and politeness in the many dialogues he moderated, for he understood that the persistence of an honest and a civil disagreement anywhere is the beginning of progress. Mamadee was one of the roots that upholds Liberia’s emerging democracy, and was fighting to make Liberia a quantum leap to democratic maturity and stability. He was also a leader leading by example, and willing to sacrifice in the interest of his country.

Unfortunately, the cold hands of death took him away from us. His demise is a great loss to the motherland, because we may never get another Attorney Mamadee F. S. Diakite.

What we are sure of is the persistence of his legacy, as the greatest wish of a man is the continuation of his positive contributions to humanity. Our hearts are also with the family, especially his young and beautiful wife, and children including the newly born baby girl Khadijah.

Rest in peace Brother Mamadee, we will meet some day, rest on brother!

Moses Uneh Yahmia, Contributing Writer