TORRENTS of tributes and eulogies are pouring in for the distinguished Nigerian and corporate titan Dr. Pascal Dozie who passed away on Tuesday April 8, 2025 at the age of 85. His sad event occurred a day shy of his 86 birthday having been born on April 9, 1939.
Numbered among the earliest mourners were President Bola Tinubu, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, 2023 Labour Party Presidential Candidate Peter Obi, Chairman of MTN Nigeria Dr Ernest Ndukwe and a host of other eminent Nigerians.
In his tribute President Bola Tinubu condoled with the Dozie family, the business community, and all Nigerians on the passing of elder statesman, entrepreneur, and banker, Pascal Gabriel Dozie.
To him, the “passing is a profound loss to the private sector and Nigeria”. He described Dozie as a visionary whose contributions to Nigeria’s economic architecture left an enduring legacy. Tinubu noted that as the founder of Diamond Bank and the pioneer Chairman of MTN Nigeria, he was at the forefront of two of the most transformative sectors in Nigeria’s development journey: banking and telecommunications. Expressing deep regret over the death of renowned business mogul, former President Olusegun Obasanjo described Dozie as one of the country’s most undaunted entrepreneurs who “was a Chairman of the MTN Foundation, former Board Member of the African Capital Alliance, founder and the inspiration behind the defunct Diamond Bank, former President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, among others”. He also stated that the deceased created thousands of jobs for Nigerians, irrespective of tribe and religion, through his numerous business ventures.
“I celebrate a man who lived the life of purpose, a life of achievement and who impacted the lives of many Nigerians by creating jobs and opportunities for generations. Obasanjo further described Dozie as “a serial entrepreneur”, who rose to become one of the major icons in the Nigerian business and entrepreneurial community in the 20th and 21st Centuries.
In mourning Dozie, Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of Labour Party in the 2023 election, stated, “I am deeply saddened this morning by the news of the passing of Dr. Pascal Dozie, a man I held in high esteem”. He recounted, “I met him during the formation of Diamond Bank and later MTN Nigeria, and throughout our collaboration, I came to know him as a true gentleman and a teacher who always sought the good of all”.
Obi noted that Dozie’s legacy as a banker has become an inspiration to individuals and businesses. He prayed, “May God Almighty, who called him home, grant him eternal rest in His kingdom, and grant his family and all of us who mourn him the fortitude to bear his irreplaceable loss,”.
Telecoms icon and Dozie’s successor as Chairman of MTN Nigeria, Dr Ernest Ndukwe, is saddened to learn of the passing of “this great leader and technocrat”. Ndukwe avowed that the MTN family and indeed the business community in Nigeria will remember him for his legacy and contributions to corporate Nigeria. While condoling his immediate family and indeed the MTNN family Ndukwe noted that Dozie “will be sorely missed”.
Similar noble sentiments were expressed in the condolence statement issued by MTN Nigeria eulogising its founding Chairman as a Pioneer, Titan, Patriot, Statesman, who played a defining role in the emergence of mobile telephony in our nation and the MTN story.
The statement noted that Dozie brought invaluable insight and astute leadership along with the needed investors to make the Y’ello dream a reality. And on May 16, 2001, he made the first call on the MTN Network.
“As Chairman for 18 years (2001-2019) Dr. Dozie was an influential and unifying force on the MTN Nigeria Board. A champion of corporate governance and social responsibility, his profound wisdom and counsel, honed from years of experience in his personal and professional life, helped MTN navigate various challenges in the course of its operations. A quiet revolutionary, a connector, a powerful force in the boardroom, he defused tension during critical times, and his calm, even tempered, winsome, charming nature and positive disposition ensured that MTN made appropriate decisions in the face of extreme business pressures.”
Dozie, the statement noted, was a multiple national award holder – Order of the Niger (OON), Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON), one-time Director of the Central Bank of Nigeria, one-time President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, founding chairman of The Nigeria Economic Summit Group, founding member of the Advisory Board of the Lagos Business School and member of the Council of Pan-Atlantic University. Cross section of Nigerians expressed sadness on the demise of Dozie whom they described variously as an eminent Nigerian, a guru, visionary, benefactor and statesman.
