Late Emmanuel Joseph Akile in Eye Radio's digital studio - File photo

Memorial services for the late senior Eye Radio journalist and Dawn Show presenter, Emmanuel Joseph Akile, are currently underway in Juba and his home town of Wau in Western Bahr el Ghazal State.

Akile died aged 36 on December 30, 2025, after he was rushed to a hospital in Gudele following a short illness.

In Juba, prayers are taking place at the family house in Gudele Block 9, where Eye Radio staff and his family are joined by government officials, members of the media fraternity and the diplomatic community.

Eye Radio is broadcasting the memorial service in Juba live on air and on its Facebook platform.

In Wau, the service is being held at the family residence in Hai-Fahal, attended by relatives, friends, media colleagues and listeners of Eye Radio, who have gathered to honour the life of the veteran journalist.

According to the family, the choir of the Catholic Diocese of Wau and St. Daniel Comboni Parish is leading the worship during the service.

Hailing from Wau, Akile joined Eye Radio in 2014 and became the presenter of Eye Radio’s flagship program, the Dawn Show, in 2016, a role he held until his death late last year.

Through the program and his reporting on peace processes in the country, including the 2018 revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan and the Kenya-led Tumaini peace initiative, Akile became one of the well-known media voices in the country.

His sudden death has drawn an outpouring of tributes from government officials, journalists, the diplomatic community, friends and colleagues, who have praised his dedication to journalism.

Akile was a Catholic by faith and is survived by his 13-year-old son, Janothan Emmanuel Joseph Akile.