RIYADH, 23 July — Saudi Arabia in general and the corporate and publishing world in particular were plunged into deep shock as the news of the sudden death yesterday of Prince Ahmad ibn Salman, chairman of the Saudi Research and Marketing Group, the parent organization of Saudi Research and Publishing Group that publishes Arab News and 16 other dailies and magazines, spread throughout the length and breadth of the country.
All through the evening and night telephones in all company offices across the Kingdom kept ringing to confirm the sad news. Citizens and residents, irrespective of business and professional affiliations, expressed their shock and termed the death of the prince untimely. Telephones in the Jeddah office buzzed with calls from international news agencies and dailies to confirm the prince’s death.
The most common reaction among the people who knew him from close quarters was that the prince’s death had created a void that would be difficult to fill.
Kanoo Group of Companies’ Deputy Chairman Abdul Aziz Kanoo called from Heathrow Airport where he had arrived from Geneva. He was in the immigration when he heard the sad news.
He found it difficult to control his emotions and said: "I’ve lost, you’ve lost, the country has lost, we all have lost. I knew the prince for over 40 years, since he was a toddler. I’ve seen him growing. He was an exceptional child gifted with unique talents. In college he was respectful, sharp and mischievous with a great sense of humor."
Kanoo, who was actively associated with Prince Ahmad in the Nabati oil project — the prince being the founding chairman of the company and Kanoo his deputy — said: "During the whole process of the project, from the making of the blue print to its launch, he amazed me with his business acumen, his understanding of market demands and his vision. I’ve lost a brother who was more like a son to me and the world has lost a very fine and genuine human being," Kanoo said in a voice choked with emotion. In a 20-minute conversation on telephone, Kanoo broke down several times. He added that business pressures and problems never bothered the prince. He always found solutions to problems and took the initiative in solving the problems of others.
He never considered himself special and above the common people just because of his royal status, and always called himself a ‘fellow human being.’
"I’ve lost a brother, your company its chairman, the country a worthy son and the world a fine and passionate human being," Kanoo said.
Dr. Abdul Qader Tash, former editor-in-chief of Arab News who is presently president of the Jeddah-based Media Research and Consultancy House, said: "It’s a very sad news. Prince Ahmad treated all people as friends and was very close to the people with whom he worked. He always admired his associates and was proud of them. I remember when I was with Al-Eqtisadiah Editor-in-Chief Mohammed Tunisi during a reception given by the prince to the crown prince of Belgium in Dammam. Prince Ahmad took pride in introducing Tunisi and me to the visiting crown prince. We were touched by the kind references the prince made about us while interacting with the crown prince. I also remember the time when Sheikh Saleh Kamel of the Dallah group wanted me to establish the Iqra satellite channel. When I conveyed this to Prince Ahmad, he was reluctant to relieve me. After about a month, he called me and said he was not in favor of relieving me. ‘We don’t want to lose you but if you think it’s in your best interest then I’ll gladly spare you,’ the prince said and sent me a touching letter thanking me for my role in the company.
The prince also mentioned that I should treat the company as my home and could come back at any time. When I left the company in 1998 after eight years of my association, it was with a heavy heart because I was leaving the company that was headed by this unique personality. One rare quality of the prince was he always believed in giving full freedom to the people he delegated responsibilities. He put full trust in all those who worked with him. His unique style of administration was the secret of his success."
Dr. Adnan Khalil Basha, Jeddah-based secretary-general of International Islamic Relief Organization, said: "The prince was known for his humanitarian work and was always in the forefront in serving noble causes. He was a prominent personality especially in the media and was largely responsible for the SRMG’s rapid growth and success. We’re sorry to lose him. He had capabilities that are rarely found in most of us. I closely observed the way he functioned and grew in stature. His absence will be widely felt."
Saleh Al-Humaidan, managing director Al-Youm Publications, publishers of Arabic daily Al-Youm, said it was a tragic loss. "The world has lost a fine human being." Al-Humaidan said that he interacted with the prince on a few occasions and on all these occasions he found that he valued human existence and its niceties. "Don’t forget the prince gave a new direction to journalism not only in the Kingdom but in the media world," he said, adding that all the credit for the modernization of media industry in the Kingdom goes to the prince. "His biggest asset was his humility, his understanding of human values. He knew the intricacies of human existence and how to deal with them," Al-Humaidan said.
Prince Khaled ibn Fahd Al-Turki, president of Al-Nahda Club, called Prince Ahmad a brother and a personal friend. "He was generous, understood the meaning of friendship and its requirements and was always keen to help people. It’s difficult to fill the vacuum created by his demise," he said.
In tributes paid in Riyadh, the prince was described as a great philanthropist and kind-hearted person imbued with human compassion. Above all, he had elevated the SRPC group of publications as a premier publishing house in the Middle East.
Dr. David Burton, director of British Council in Saudi Arabia, said Prince Ahmad was a great friend of the British. "We’re terribly upset over the shocking news. He had done a lot to send young Saudis to Britain for training in journalism in cooperation with the British Council. We’ll miss that connection."
Zikr-ur-Rahman, first secretary at the Embassy of India said the prince played a key role in promoting the cause of India’s regional languages with the launch of Urdu News and Malayalam News. He had also put SRPC in the forefront of Arab journalism with 15 Arabic publications under the umbrella of his group.
Ali Bin Nasser Alsharif, managing editor of Arriyadiah, a sister publication of Arab News, said the prince conducted himself more like a brother than as a boss. "He was always eager to help those in need without any show or publicity. No one who approached him ever returned empty-handed. It was because of his charitable disposition that he served with great distinction as the secretary general of the Prince Fahd ibn Salman Charitable Society for the Care of the Kidney Patients that was designed to treat 140 kidney patients a day."
Abdulmohsen Al-Murshid, a senior Saudi journalist who knew Prince Ahmad from close quarters, said the late prince played a major role in promoting Saudization in the media. "Thanks to his initiative, all the editors in chief of the SRPC group of publications are Saudis. He also sent them abroad for training in journalism."
Abdulmohsen said the prince paid attention to the development of other regions in the Kingdom. He had also organized a seminar on investment opportunities in Najran, for which he had a special interest. He had married the daughter of Najran Governor Prince Mishaal ibn Saud.
Abdul Aziz Al-Hendi, a senior journalist from Asharq Al-Awsat, quoted Nasser ibn Sa’ad, a close companion of Prince Ahmad for the last 38 years, as saying that the late prince did a lot to promote talented people through the media. He said the accomplishments of such people were always highlighted in the SRPC publications. "He visited the sick in hospitals and helped the unemployed. The vacuum created by his tragic loss could never be filled. "
Khalaf A. Al-Malki, chief sports editor of Al-Eqtisadiah, said that though horse racing was the first love of Prince Ahmad, he instructed his publications to give equal attention to other sports clubs without any distinction.
In this context, Mustafa Hashim, a racing enthusiast, said the greatest triumph for the prince was when his million-dollar horse War Emblem won the 128th Kentucky Derby. Yet, he never took the credit for landing such a prestigious victory. "It’s not for me. It’s a victory for the Saudis," he said, on becoming the first Arab to win the race. "I’ve spent 22 years in this (horse) business and as a kid I was always around horses," said Hashim, quoting an interview that Prince Ahmad gave in the US.
— Javid Hassan in Riyadh, Saeed Haider in Dammam and K.S. Ramkumar in Jeddah
