By Waheed Ahmad

Beni Nurtjahja Wahju (1934 – 2012)

Beni Wahju contained in himself some of the best of human traits and qualities: kind at heart; gentle in disposition; genuinely sincere; straightforward in talk; loyal to his friends and colleagues; devoted to his family; and helpful to one and all. This was Beni Wahju – a thorough gentleman and honest to a fault.

I have known Beni since 1969 – June 10, 1969 to be exact. I still remember the day when I first landed in Malili where Beni met me at the helipad. It was a brief first meeting since he was on his way to a coastal reconnaissance of the southeast arm of Sulawesi using Peppi, the company’s small yacht. It was not until some six weeks later that he returned from his trip that we actually began to know each other. Over the more than forty-two years of our association, I have developed great respect for Beni who came to regard me as his younger brother.

Although trained as a geologist, Beni developed a keen interest in the history, geography, culture, and fauna of Indonesia. He was an avid reader and his collection of books was truly enviable. You simply could not talk to Beni without learning something important. He was great in synthesising information and offering unique perspectives.

If there was one trait in Beni that shone above all his other qualities, it was his extreme kindness towards his fellowman. I have not come across another individual in my life – barring Beni’s own wife, Soffie – who would go to such great lengths to help another individual. People used to flock to him without any reservation of heart, seeking his guidance, advice and assistance. When around Christmas of 1969 the bachelor mess in Malili burned down to the ground, Beni offered his own house to the newly homeless. The number of people who came to stay with Beni in his small two-bedroom house could be imagined by the fact that the hallway of the house was adorned by a heapful of shoes!

Beni and Soffie represented the quintessence of the Indonesian custom of dropping upon each other uninvited. Their door was always open to the visitor and one could not leave without partaking of some food. Their hospitality was such that one never got the feeling that they were being imposed upon. Their generosity of heart was definitely a key factor that united the community of the early pioneers.

Beni loved to listen to music. His taste leaned towards the classical and the folk. He had an excellent collection of long-playing records and would not mind if others came to make recordings on tape for their own listening. These were the days of the early 1970s when ownership of high-fidelity audio equipment was still uncommon.

Beni came from a rather large family, being one of fourteen siblings. Although he was not the eldest, he was usually the one whose advice was sought by the family members at important occasions. The myriads of nephews and nieces looked upon “Umm Beni” with great affection; he was clearly their ‘godfather’!

Working and living together, our families drew very close over the years. In 1971, my wife Amtul and Beni’s wife Soffie were both expecting. One night Beni saw a star in his dream and promptly predicted that both ladies were going to have boys. I do not know to this day what was the scientific basis for such a conclusion but the prophecy did turn out to be true!

Whenever I travelled with Beni to far-away field camps in Sulawesi, I saw him seek out the labourers working for us and the common folks in the local community. He wanted to know how they were faring and how they looked at things. He would listen to them patiently and they in turn felt extremely comfortable in his company, glad to open up their hearts to his sympathetic ear. This was a very unusual trait of Beni that he felt just as much at ease speaking with the labour class as with the high-ranking government officials. And it is no exaggeration to say that Beni personally knew practically every high-ranking government official in Indonesia! I used to joke with him about this fact and he would simply smile. Whenever an individual or PT Inco needed help from a particular government official or an embassy staff, it would turn out that Beni knew that person!

When faced with a conflict, Beni would keep a cool head and find a happy resolution. Thus, when the labourers began a demonstration against PT Inco in Malili in the 1970s, it was Beni who was called upon to talk to them. He listened to their demands and patiently explained the company policy to them. Needless to say, the conflict was resolved peacefully.

Being kind at heart and gentle of spirit, it would sit extremely heavy on him when someone was mistreated or was dealt with unfairly. On learning of the situation, Beni would invariably plead for the individual, trying his best to reverse the wrong. It was this true compassion of his that earned him everyone’s deep love and regard.

Beni was not only a pioneer of development at PT Inco but in fact had a true pioneering spirit in him. He led the early exploration teams in search of nickel laterites; forged friendship and understanding with the local communities; established rapport with the government officials; found ways to overcome difficulties and challenges; and paved the way for the next generation. Thus, the members of the local communities did not look upon Beni as a representative of the company but as their own friend. Similarly, the employees of the company did not look upon him as their boss but as their sympathiser. Ever mindful of the plight of the hapless, Beni ¾ and his wife, Soffie as well – found ways to render assistance without any social prejudice.

After retiring from PT Inco, Beni joined PT Ingold Management, the exploration subsidiary of Inco Limited in Indonesia. Beni had always been very active in the geology and mining associations and frequently represented Indonesia in domestic and foreign seminars. He headed the Indonesian Mining Association for a number of years, frequently getting elected without a contest. He was instrumental in removing a number of misunderstandings in the minds of the law-makers with respect to the poor perception of the mining industry in general.

Being a leader of the pioneers at PT Inco, Beni wanted to record the history of this pioneering work, including interesting and exciting anecdotes. We often talked about this project and promised to contribute whatever we could. Unfortunately, this never came to fruition in his lifetime. Now that he has passed away, we could revisit this ambition of his and complete the task as a befitting memento to his pioneering spirit.

My last visit with Beni took place in December 2011, just six weeks prior to his demise. Jan Sajer and I were visiting Sorowako on business when Beni invited us to his house in Jakarta to meet with some of the early pioneers. We all had a wonderful time together, reminiscing about the old days, not realising that the foremost of the pioneers was to depart from us very soon.

When I look back at our long and happy association and marvel at the great individual that Beni really was, I cannot escape the feeling that it was truly an honour to have known him. Persons like him are not born everyday, and this particular person was one in a million.

Mississauga, Canada

April 15, 2012