The death has been announced in
London, of Pastor Reuben Andrew ARIMOKU, of Ogbe-Mmudein Village, Agbor, in Ika
Local Government Area of Delta State.
A retired Electrical Engineer
of the former Nigerian Electric Power Authority, (NEPA), he died on Christmas
Eve, 2010, in an undisclosed hospital, after a protracted battle with Cancer.
Born in March 1937, to Mr.
Arimoku Okoh and his wife, Ojese at Ogbe-Mmudein Village, Agbor, he showed
early signs of of promise and rare intelligence with the result that after his
Primary School at Agbor, he proceeded to the famous Dennis Memorial Grammar
School, (DMGS), Onitsha, Anambra State, a great Centre for Educational
Execellence in Colonial Nigeria. He left in 1957 with outstanding results in
his West African School Certificate Examination.
In 1961, he gained admission to
the Federal Emergency Science School,
Onikan, Lagos, Lagos State, to read for his A Level Papers in the General
Certificate of Education.
He got through with flying
colours and applied for a Scholarship to read Medicine in a Scottish University while
he also applied for a Scholarship to do a First Degree in Electrical
Engineering at a University in Cairo, Egypt, in North Africa. The response to his application to a Cairo University
was published first, so he left Nigeria for Egypt, to read for his Electrical
Engineering degree.
On graduation, he decided to
return home to Nigeria but he was caught up in the maelstrom of the Civil War
between Nigeria and Biafra. He decided to jump ship in Ghana where he started
to look for work in order to support his young Egyptian bride, Salwa, with whom
he had tied the knot before he left Cairo.
She soon joined him in Ghana
where their first child, Mona was born. She was soon followed by a brother,
Monir. This was around 1968 and after four years sojourn in Ghana, they all
returned to Nigeria where he got a job with NEPA. Two other children, twin
daughters, Nkechi and Ngozi, soon followed.
Mr. Arimoku rendered a
meritorious service to NEPA and stayed there until his retirement.
At a Service of Songs prayer
session held for the repose of his soul at the Father’s House Church, in Burnt
Oak, a North London suburb, on Tuesday, January 4, 2011, his eldest daughter,
Mona, described him as a very brilliant Electrical Engineer who constantly
instructed his children in various subjects of interest to enable them live in wisdom. Although she said that he
practically “had an absence of social etiquette”, he was very truthful and full
of life, she also added.
His son, Monir, described him
as a very good cook and his hobbies included photography and computing where he
exhibited a very great skill.
The Senior Pastor of the
Father’s House Church, Pastor Rex Chosen, intimated that Reuben had become a
Born- Again- Christian who had chosen Christ and had immersed himself into
learning the Bible so much
that at the Church, he was nicknamed “a Human Computer” because of his
mastery of the Scriptures.
Usually reliable sources said
that Reuben’s father, Arimoku Okoh, an employee of the old Public Works
Department of the former Midwest Region of Nigeria, had won some huge sum of
money in a Lottery Draw and was
nicknamed “Ten Thousand”, which was probably the amount he had won in that Lucky Jackpot in those days.
This same source was of the
opinion that Pa Arimoku Okoh had provided much material wealth for his children
and this had probably rubbed off on the right side with Reuben, who, according
to his son, Monir, was one of the very few university students in Cairo who had
their personal cars when they were studying.
He was buried on Wednesday,
January, 5, 2011, at the Hendon Chapel and Cemetery in Holders Hill, Golders
Green, an upmarket North London suburb.
Members of the Agbor
Daughters Cultural Association, London
Branch, including Mrs. Esther Onwuemezie, Vice President, Mrs. Veronica
Onwudinjo and Mrs. Eunice Ideh, sang the Agbor Funeral Dirge at the graveside, to
bid him farewell. Other mourners from
Ikaland included the retired Banker,
Business Entrepreneur and a Director of Zenith Bank, Jefferey Efeyini and his Bulgarian wife, Yordanka, Mrs.
Rose Ebite of Obi-Olihe, Agbor and Obi
Uwadia, son of erstwhile Delta State
Commissioner and Justice of the Peace, Chief (Mrs.) Henrietta
Ajuebon-Egbarin.
The late Reuben Andrew Arimoku
was survived by Salwa, his Egyptian wife of over 40 years, his daughters, Mona,
Nkechi and Ngozi with their husbands and children and his only son, Monir.
Prominent among those who would
mourn his loss at Agbor is his younger brother, Monsignor Dennis Arimoku, the
foremost Agbor Cleric in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Issele-Uku,
Delta State. I gather from the grapevine, that
he is rearing to join the Septuagenarian Club in no distant date.
For the repose of the soul of the
late Reuben Arimoku, we pray to the Almighty God with our plea, “Dona ei pace”.
(“Father, give him Eternal Peace!)”
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