Gladness Gideon
In a deeply moving and private farewell, Reverend Father Benjamin Achi—renowned Catholic priest and communicator—officiated the funeral rites of legendary highlife musician Gentleman Mike Ejeagha, fulfilling the late icon’s solemn wish for a quiet, unceremonious interment.
Father Achi, a Catholic priest for 18 years and former Director of Communications for the Catholic Diocese of Enugu, now serves as Director of Communications at Godfrey Okoye University and Station Manager at GOUNI Radio. But on Saturday, June 7, he stepped into a role far more personal—that of a son bidding farewell to a father figure.
Ejeagha, who passed away on the evening of Friday, June 6, had explicitly requested a low-profile burial, shunning fanfare for peace and privacy. Less than 24 hours after his death, his wishes were honored.
“The ceremony was indeed quite solemn,” Father Achi recalled. “Not many people knew about the immediate interment except his immediate family and a few of us who were very close to him.”
The requiem mass, held at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Parish in Imezi Owa, began at 5:00 p.m. and concluded with the burial at 6:30 p.m., with Father Philip Igboamalu, the parish priest, joining Father Achi in officiating the rites.
“He never wanted pomp or pageantry,” Achi continued. “It actually surprised many who later heard about it. But that was his wish—and we fulfilled it exactly as he directed.”
The emotional weight of the moment was not lost on Father Achi, who described it as one of the most heartfelt services he has conducted in nearly two decades of priesthood.
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“I had goose pimples all over me,” he admitted. “It was not just another funeral mass—it was a personal loss. A man I saw at least three times a week, a friend who treated me like his own son.”
Their relationship, he said, was rooted in shared faith and mutual respect, strengthened over years of weekly visits for communion and Catholic rites, often without appointments. Even in Ejeagha’s final days, Father Achi was there—praying at his bedside, offering the Holy Sacrament, and hoping for recovery.
“I was at home when the call came around 8 p.m. on Friday,” he said, voice tinged with lingering sorrow. “It rattled me. While I wouldn’t say I was shocked, I still hoped for the best.”
Though grief-stricken, Father Achi remains grateful for the long, fulfilled life of the man he called “Papa,” and for the quiet dignity with which his final wishes were honored.
“God gave him talent and longevity,” he said. “I’m just grateful to have walked a part of that journey with him.”