November 28, (THEWILL) – The remains of Mr. Austin Tule, were on Saturday laid to rest at his residence in Ikyogbajir, Gwer East Local Government Area of Benue State.
The death of Tule is one in the sequence of deaths of journalists in the state this year. Apart from the demise of reporters of local tabloids in the state, the passing away of Barnabas Agirigi of Business Day, Tordue Salem of Vanguard and Austin Tule of THEWILL newspaper characterises the dark days of journalism in Benue State.
Governor Samuel Ortom, in his condolence letter to Media Intellectuals’ Union, a media group Tule belonged to while alive, lamented the incessant deaths of journalists in the state. He described Tule as a dogged and determined journalist. The letter reads in part, “From all accounts, the deceased was a young and vibrant journalist whose life ambition, aspirations and prospect for higher heights were cut short by death.”
Similarly, the Chairman of the Correspondents Chapel in Benue State, Mr. Tor Acka, represented by Martins Kajo described the late Tule as a journalist with an eye for the news, saying that the deceased left a legacy that could serve as a stepping stone for younger journalists.
In an interview with this reporter, Austin’s younger sister, Miss Lilian Tule, who plays for Lakatamia Football Club in Cyprus, said, “Life will not be the same without Austin. He was like a father to us his siblings. His death refreshed memories of our father’s departure.”
In separate speeches, the President of the Media Intellectual Union, Comrade Terese Tuwa, Benue Peace Ambassador, Mr. Philip Wuhe and Chairman of the PDP, Ikyogbajir Ward, extolled the deceased’s qualities as a journalist and called on the members of his family and other journalists to take solace in the fact that he lived an eventful life.
Austin is survived by his mother, wife, Prisca, two children, his brothers and sisters.
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