by NyaknnoAbasi Osso
“This is my humble story of destiny, friendship, remembrance, and the preservation of Nigeria’s intellectual heritage”.
It is amazing how God connects the dots of our lives, sometimes through people whose influence we may not fully understand until many years later.
My journey began with Uncle Ray Ekpu, the legendary journalist who introduced me to the fascinating world of Journalism Librarianship.
Through him, I met his good friend, Uncle Dele Giwa, the brilliant journalist whose intellect, courage, and professional excellence left an indelible mark on Nigerian journalism.
Then came October 19, 1986. Nigeria was shaken by the tragic death of Dele Giwa in a parcel bomb attack.
A bright star had been extinguished, leaving behind a nation in mourning and a generation of journalists wondering how such a towering intellect could be lost so violently.
But sometimes, the death of a man does not mark the end of his story.
It marks the beginning of another chapter in the lives of those he has inspired.
Two years after Giwa’s death, in 1988, I found a telephone number in his Reporter’s Notebook.
That number led me to General Olusegun Obasanjo…”through just a phone call”.
Little did I know that this seemingly ordinary discovery would become a turning point in my life and in Nigeria’s historical documentation.
A telephone number! A notebook! A connection preserved!
What appeared to be a small detail in a journalist’s working materials became a bridge to an extraordinary national project.
Years later, after a long journey of dedication and perseverance, AGAINST ALL ODDS, the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library emerged in Abeokuta, Ogun State as a living monument to leadership, history, and the preservation of knowledge.
And I cannot help but see THE FINGER OF GOD in these remarkable connections.
Uncle Ray opened the door to Journalism Librarianship. Uncle Dele, through his work and his Reporter’s Notebook, unknowingly helped provide a pathway to another chapter of my destiny.
And General Obasanjo became central to a historic undertaking that would take years of commitment to realise.
Forty years after Dele Giwa’s death, his intellectual legacy continues to speak.
On October 19, 2026, his memory was honoured through the celebration associated with the book DELE GIWA’S GRANITE JOURNALISM, edited by Ray Ekpu.
In his acknowledgements, Uncle Ray paid me a profound tribute:
“I want to thank Nyaknno Osso profusely for his diligence in gathering the BULK of the materials assembled here.”
Those words mean more to me than personal recognition.
They affirm a conviction that has guided much of my life’s work: great minds may depart, but their ideas, words, achievements, and contributions must never be allowed to disappear.
To gather, preserve, organise, and make available the materials that tell a great man’s story is itself an act of service to history.
It is a way of ensuring that future generations will not merely hear the names of their heroes but will have the opportunity to study their thoughts, understand their struggles, and learn from their courage.
This is the same spirit that drives the Biographical Legacy and Research Foundation (BLERF) through blerf.org and its enduring commitment to documenting the lives and achievements of outstanding Nigerians.
From Ray Ekpu to Dele GIWA, from General Olusegun Obasanjo to the many high-flying Nigerians whose stories deserve to be preserved.
The mission remains the same: to rescue valuable knowledge from the danger of forgetfulness and make it accessible to scholars, researchers, journalists, writers, students, and generations yet unborn.
I have come to understand that my calling is bigger than collecting documents or compiling biographies.
It is about building bridges between the past, the present, and the future.
Perhaps that is why a notebook, a telephone number, a friendship, a tragic loss, and a lifelong commitment have become connected threads in the tapestry of my life.
Dele Giwa did not live to see the full journey that followed his death.
Yet his intellectual footprints remain part of the story. Ray Ekpu continues to champion his memory. And those of us entrusted with preserving the materials of great Nigerians must keep doing our part.
A man may be silenced, but his ideas need not die.
A life may end, but its legacy can continue to inspire.
And a nation that preserves the stories of its finest minds gives its future generations something more enduring than monuments:
it gives them memory, identity, and wisdom.
Today, as I reflect on these connections, my heart returns to one simple declaration:
THE FINGER OF GOD!
For me, it is the thread connecting the people I met, the opportunities I encountered, the challenges I survived, and the historical legacies I have been privileged to help preserve.
And as long as I have the strength to continue, BLERF will remain part of that mission: documenting the lives of outstanding Nigerians, preserving their intellectual treasures, and ensuring that their contributions are not lost to time.
For the next generation must know who we were, what we achieved, what we stood for, and what they can learn from us.
That is my commitment.
That is my calling.
That is the living legacy of Dele Giwa, Ray Ekpu, and the many Nigerian heroes whose stories must never be forgotten.
by NyaknnoAbasi Osso
Biographical Researcher, Archivist, Documentalist, and Founder of BLERF, Publishers of Nigeria’s first and only ONLINE WHO’S WHO IN NIGERIA(blerf.org).