The death of Tony Farah last month was a great shock to the electrical engi-neering and high-technology business fraternity. The large turnout at a memorial service held in Woodmead, Johannesburg, was a testomony to the popularity of such a fine gentleman. Friends and family who had had the privilege of working and being associated with him gathered at an extremely moving service at Our Lady of the Cedars.

To almost the last minute of chatting with his entire family in his home in Bakoven, near Camps Bay, in Cape Town, he was relentlessly full of humour but he passed away peacefully in his sleep after an uncomfortable period of cancer and bone-marrow degeneration.
Farah was born in Johannesburg of Lebanese parents on November 12, 1948. He matriculated at Marist Brothers Observatory and went on to complete a BSc degree in electrical engineering in 1972 and an MBA in 1974 at the University of the Witwatersrand.
In 1990, he took a sabbatical from Spescom to complete an advanced management programme at Harvard Business School. This tertiary education stood him in good stead for the continued development and success of the multinational and JSE-listed Spescom group, which he founded in 1977.
Prior to the founding of Spescom, he was an executive director at Hubert Davies Electrical Engineering from 1974 to 1977.
During the period 1988 to 1992, Farah served as VP of the Electronics Industry Federation. From 2001 to 2007, he served on the Presidential National Commission for Information and Development as well as Public Administration and Defence.

In 1997, he was nominated Lebanese World Businessperson of the year by the Lebanese Cultural Union.
On his retirement, after 30 years at the helm of Spescom, this popular and highly respected entrepreneur reminded an inter-viewer that the group had developed and patented many technologies over the years, including ‘tokenless’ prepaid metering, a technology that is now successfully marketed internationally. But, during the latter years of his leadership as executive chairperson and group CEO, Farah admitted that he found, particularly over those last few years, that the added administration and red tape required by more and more strict corporate governance rules made it much more difficult to react quickly to market conditions and hindered his entrepreneurial expertise – but, in his words, “it’s all been a great journey”.
He was a member of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers until the time he resigned from Spescom.
On his retirement to Cape Town, he estab-lished a new Farah investment company – New Investment Creation. This new entrepreneurship involved advising and investing in innovative ventures as well as a host of financial, marketing, strategic planning and business advice activities.
Finally, he was investor/adviser on a new venture at Zulustar – a new Farah family growth company – the activities of which became very close to his heart.
Tony Farah is survived by Judy and five adult children and their families.
His legacy and spirit lives on.