Tributes are pouring in for former Sports Minister Moses Dossi following his death in the wee hours of yesterday at Blantyre Adventist Hospital after a short illness.
Dossi was also known as ‘Man on The Touchline’ in media circles for his exceptional football reporting and analytical skills.
His family disclosed that burial will take place Saturday in the area of Traditional Authority Chapananga in Chikwawa District.
Former president Bakali Muluzi, who appointed Dossi as minister, expressed shock with the news.
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“I have been informed about the news of the passing on of Honourable Moses Dossi who served as minister of Sports and Culture during my administration’s reign. I would like to, first of all, convey my deepest condolences to the family, the children.
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“Honourable Dossi was a wonderful and cheerful young man then when I met him. One of the reasons I appointed him minister of Sports was because of his passion for Malawi. So my condolences to the Dossi family and the entire nation on this loss,” Muluzi said.
Football Association of Malawi President Fleetwood Haiya was equally saddened upon learning about Dossi’s demise.
“To the football fraternity, Mr Dossi Snr was a pillar and an asset to Malawi football because of his immense contribution to the game through his reporting, commentary and analysis.
“Through his pen and microphone, Mr Dossi set the pace for football development in the country by giving the game positive coverage that helped uplift its standards. He was also an adviser to several of us for many years and we indeed benefited from his deep understanding of the game,” Haiya said.
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Sports Writers Association of Malawi former president Peter Kanjere also shared fond memories of Dossi.
“He will be remembered as a legendary sports caster who blazed the trail as a radio football analyst, reporter and a book author with an authentic voice and style.
“He was so poetic he could tell a 90-minute game in one minute yet with all the details from the sound and sights, to the goals. No one else does that in Malawi.
“Now it is just about the action, nothing about painting and capturing the atmosphere and the vibe. He was an embodiment of total passion for sports. We will miss his easy going attitude, wide charming big smile and his signature ‘achimwene’ greeting,” Kanjere recalled.
Kanjere also recalled that Dossi helped to curb violence during a game involving FCB Nyasa Big Bullets at Kamuzu Stadium.
“One enduring memory I have of him is when there were running battles at Kamuzu Stadium during a match involving Bullets.
“As we, reporters, scampered for our dear lives ducking an avalanche of stones from Bullets’ Biafra stand, Dossi walked straight to the ‘battlefront’, joined stewards, stood in front of them and pleaded with the angry mob to calm down.
“Calm down they did, obeying a man armed with just a notepad and a pen. There was only one Last Man on the Touchline,” Kanjere remembered.
Dossi has died aged 71. He is survived by six children and 11 grandchildren.
