A Tribute To Martin Mabutho, Late MultiChoice Nigeria CCO

The death of Martin Gaone Mabutho, the Chief Customer Officer of MultiChoice Nigeria, a Joint Venture of MultiChoice Africa and leading pay entertainment company in Africa, has been confirmed by the company.

Martin passed on Tuesday morning in Capetown, South Africa after a brief illness according to the information made available to the staff of the company on Tuesday afternoon by the management.

His sudden death at the young age of 47, came as a shock to many who have had the opportunity to relate with him as acquaintance, friend or professional colleague before his demise.

The Man, Martin Mabutho

He was so full of life, Martin Mabutho of Botswanan heritage: Ebullient, engaging, animated and ever ready to join in conversations which he could easily dominate on a good day if he wanted to. Many a friend balked from staying long on the opposing lane against Martin in an argument because his loud, guttural voice easily forced you into conceding grounds else he drowned your voice completely. But Martin was never one to throw his weight about and he was always sensitive about people’s feelings. His customary loud laughter served to remind many his friends that he took nothing personal.

It was difficult not to have noticed Martin Mabutho in a crowd: imposing in height, size, swagger and knowledge on many fronts. He liked and understood music, he loved the arts and was at home with general entertainment. He also bore a keen sense of delicate taste which he belied with his casual dressing. You hardly saw Martin fully dressed up except the occasion demanded it.

A diehard Manchester United fan, Martin also relished the occasional night life because it afforded him the regular window to reflect, be with his friends and ease the stress of officialdom. Despite his role as a top corporate executive, he liked to roll up his sleeves and mix with everybody that came anywhere close to the line of sight of his probing eyes.

Although now late, the MultiChoice Group would fondly remember Martin as the man who served the company with all his heart and soul. From early beginning in MultiChoice Botswana in 1999 as Customer Service Supervisor, he became the PR and Publicity Officer before evolving into the role of a Marketing Manager. Ever amorphous, it was difficult to pin him to a role as  he easily combined branding, advertising and customer service to his role as a publicity and PR specialist back then.

in 2003, after conquering his native Botswana, Martin relocated to South Africa as the Brand Manager for M-Net Africa (a sister company to MultiChoice Africa). As brand manager he visited Nigeria on many occasions and he was a part of the team that birthed the original AfricaMagic Channel with Hamida Suliman (South Africa) Chuma Oduche (Nigeria, Content), Donald Etim (MultiChoice Nigeria Marketing) and a host of others in M-Net and MultiChoice Africa too numerous to mention.

Not know to shy away from new challenges, Martin later became the Africa Marketing Manager for the DStv Mobile pet project which was originally launched as DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcast – Handheld), before it was rebranded as DStv Mobile in May 2010 in Lagos, Nigeria.

After his stint at the mobile arm of the business, Martin remained in the MultiChoice Group in South Africa before he was appointed against the run of play in 2013 to become the General Manager (Marketing) in MultiChoice Nigeria and later the GM Sales and Marketing. He was later promoted to the role of the Chief Customer Officer to oversee the sales, marketing and operations portfolio of the business circa 2018.

Suddenly, after over 30 years of meritorious service and just when friends and colleagues in the pay television industry were wondering what next for Martin Mabutho, the cold hands of death sneaked in like a thief at night to settle the matter with a note of finality that is unexpected, shocking and irreversible.

Rest in peace Martin Gaone Mabutho and remember to put your baritone voice to good use for the Angels in the service of the Lord in the hereafter.

Martin is survived by his wife and four children.