PHOTO: Journalist Mike T. James
By Joe Bartuah
It’s with heavy heart that I’m hearing about the passing of Mr. Mike T. James, former Editor-in-Chief of the erstwhile NEW LIBERIAN newspaper, one of the unsung heroes of the Noble Inky Fraternity. In June of 1985 when the late Honorable Jesse B. Karnley, then Assistant Minister for Public Affairs assigned me to the NEW LIBERIAN as a young reporter at the time, my letter of introduction was addressed to Mr. James, in his capacity as Editor-in-Chief of that state-owned newspaper.
When I entered the offices of the newspaper, then located on the second floor of the Edward James Roye Building on Ashmun Street in Monrovia, I met my new boss, who turned out to be very friendly, affable and congenial.
Mr. James, a son of Foya District, Lofa County born in 1954, had joined the NEW LIBERIAN as Features Writer on the heels of the African heads of state summit of the Organization for African Unity (OAU) in 1979, following his graduation from the Fourah Bay College in Sierra Leone the previous year.
Mike T. James
There at the NEW LIBERIAN, he robbed shoulders with some of the foot soldiers of the media; some of titans of the mighty pen, among them the late Tom Kamara, J. Emmanuel Bowier and Rufus Marmah Darpoh. As a consummate writer, Mr. James meritoriously rose through the ranks over the years, becoming News Editor and eventually Editor-in-Chief of the paper. In those days, his favorite column, A Point-to-Pointers was well-known and well-read.
Undoubtedly, Mr. James was a versatile journalist. Besides frequently writing on multiple socio-economic, political and cultural issues, he also had a knack for the entertainment industry. For example, in the mid 1980s, he wrote and directed a movie, The Return of Bindu Sidan, which instantly became a hit on ELTV. At the time, a young Al-Jerome Chede (currently Minister Counselor for Press and Public Affairs at the Liberian Embassy near Washington, DC), acted in that movie as the funeral director (embalmer).
The story, which was set in a 1950s Monrovia, was about Bindu Sidan, a mythical female socialite or “street girl”, who was said to have gone in coma, following a motor accident. Those at the scene of the “accident” had thought that Bindu Sidan had died. She was then taken to a funeral home. However, hours later, Bindu regained her consciousness and began speaking, wondering where she was.
But as spectacularly dramatized by AL-Jerome in the movie at the time, the funeral director was desperate; he didn’t want to lose his hefty embalmment money and so, he brought the deadly chemical and forcibly injected Bindu on her shoulder, instantly killing her. As the story goes, due to the brutal manner in which Bindu was murdered while still in her prime, she decided to return from the spirit world and haunt womanizing, night club-going men to their death.
The late Mike James was multitalented. He also wrote and directed another movie—It’s Too Late—about HIV/AIDS prevention in the mid 1990s. It was about a womanizing, sexually promiscuous young man who later contracted HIV. Two other media colleagues—Willie Bowier, Jr. and Joe The acted in that movie. The latest movie, which he produced in collaboration with the Talking Drum Studio and the Flomo Theater Group, was sponsored at the time by Save the Children, a well-known international non-governmental organization. Up to this moment, Save the Children is still using that dramatic film to carry out public education around the world about the deadly virus.
As I sit here somberly reflecting on my interactions with my late boss, memories of several former colleagues are also streaming through the screen of my mind. While Mr. James himself had a skinny frame and relatively short, his deputy was the towering Samuel Hne Johnson, now a resident of Sacramento, California. I’m also reflecting on the memories of other colleagues of sainted memories, such as J. N. Elliott, who was the News Editor; Mr. Juku Harris, our handworking typesetter and Mr. Roland Jones, our layout specialist at the time.
We all had hectic and sometimes fun-studded time together, professionally collaborating, not knowing what fate and destiny had in store for each of us. When I was leaving Liberia in July 2001, Mr. James was by then in charge of Public Relations with the local United Nations system in Liberia. As one of the finest gems of journalism, editor Michael Tamba James immensely contributed to the promotion and sustainability of Liberian journalism. His death in his 67th year is indeed, an irreparable loss to the Inky Fraternity.
My deepest condolences go to his wife, his children and all members of the bereaved family. May the precious soul of Michael Tamba James, rest in perpetual peace.