Komla Dumor buries mum

A burial mass has been held at the Holy Spirit Cathedral, Adabraka, Accra for the late Mrs. Cecilia Joana Kokui Dumor, 63, who passed away on December 13, 2008.

The late Mrs Dumor was the mother of Ms Mawuena Dumor, Corporate Services Director of telecoms operator, MTN; Komla Dumor of the BBC and formerly of Joy FM; and Dr. Korshie Dumor, Physician college of Physicians & Surgeons, Colombia University, New York, USA.

She was also the wife of Professor Ernest K. Dumor, Advisor to the National Identification Authority.

The ceremony witnessed a large attendance by a cross section of the society, among them politicians, diplomats, academicians, clergymen and the business community.

His Eminence Peter Cardinal Appiah-Turkson, the Most Rev. Charles Gabriel Palmer-Buckle (Archbishop of Accra) and Most Rev. Francis Lodonu, (Bishop of Ho) were among officiating ministers.

Vice President John Mahama; ex-diplomat Victor Gbeho (a brother of the deceased); Messrs Kwasi Twum, CEO of Multimedia Group Ltd; Herbert Mensah of Fortia Limited, Mrs Joyce Villars of Camelot, Kojo Bonsu of Agoo Magazine, Mr. Kojo Armah and Prof. George Hagan, both of the Convention Peoples Party, were among the many dignitaries to attend the ceremony and to sympathise with bereaved family.

Born to the late Philip Gbeho, musician and composer of Ghana's national anthem, and Hilda Dennis, a trained midwife, the late Mrs Cecilia Dumor was an educationist, editor and publisher of several textbooks for second cycle programmes and courses.

In tributes, Professor Dumor described her late wife as “a strong woman of faith, a strong woman of courage” who “gave full expression of an enduring love for me and the children. No wonder the last words you spoke to me before losing your speech testifies to how seriously you took your nuptial vows. Even as you were in pain and tears were rolling down your face, you continued to express your unfailing love. You called to me Daddy! Daddy! I love you and I love you very much. I am forever grateful.”

Mawuena recalled fondly how her late mother, in teaching her how to cook and manage a home alongside academic and professional interests, skillfully tasked her to undertake certain chores thus; “My dear, I am certain that you will be the CEO of some great company, but you still have to chop those onions and that garlic for me!” Mawuena said her mother's lessons have made her a better woman, and she also recognizes that “a young woman can be respected for her independence and self-assurance at work as well as her humility, spirituality and commitment to family at home,” all of which values she owed to her mother.