It was an interesting time for these individuals who were in public office at various times. Many years after they left office, it is not clear where they could be at the moment; IDACHABA SUNNY writes.
Abu Obe
Chief Abu Obe, the former Head of Service of the Federation (HOSF) can best be described as the bridge builder between the military era and the present democratic dispensation that started in 1999. This is because on return to the current democratic experience, then newly sworn-in President Olusegun Obasanjo wanted to separate the running of the civil service from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) in order to completely insulate it from political interference, therefore after a careful search among the existing technocrat civil servants he inherited from the military era, he settled for Chief Obe as the first Head Of Service of the Federation (HOSF) under a democratically elected government.
Obe, it was whose tenure as HOSF witnessed what everyone termed a paradigm shift in the way the civil servants work. It was under him that the saying, ‘It’s no longer business as usual’ became a popular phrase in the country. This was because President Obasanjo made it clear to him that the machineries of the civil service falls squarely on his shoulder; therefore, civil servants should choose between working and using official hours for their personal businesses. This Benue state born public servant not only ensured that civil servants comply with the policy directives of the government, but went ahead to instill discipline and probity in the service as lateness that characterised the attitude of workers in the military era suddenly became a thing of the past.
While commenting on the civil service under Obe, a major newspaper ran an editorial saying: “Suddenly, the civil service that was once bogged down with red tapism and kickbacks before files were attended to now wears a new lease of life. Civil servants now understand that they are the engine room of government activities outside of which every current regime is grounded.” That was the civil service that Obe inherited and bequeathed to Yayale Ahmed as he left the service under inexplicable circumstances in the later days of Obasanjo’s administration. Since he left office, nothing has been heard about him any longer.
Odein Ajumogobia
Odein Henry Ajumogobia is a former minister. He served in the Yar Adua/Jonathan administration both as minister of state for petroleum between 2007 and 2009 and as foreign affairs minister from 2010 to 2011. He was also in the Ministry of Power in that capacity for a brief moment before he left. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), he was also a commissioner for justice and Attorney General of Rivers state in Peter Odili’s administration. Ajumogobia was a member of several government teams like the National Economic Management team, Honorary Investment Council, National Privatisation Council, National Independent Power Programme, and National Security Council, president, UN Security Council and a host of others when he was in government.
While he held briefs as minister of state for petroleum, one of the things he did was to push for deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil industry, arguing that it would eliminate shortages of petroleum products while at the same time saving tax-payers over N687 billion in annual subsidies. He left public office almost 10 years ago, but nothing has been heard about this Kalabari-born Ijaw legal expert again.
Humphrey Abba
Chief Humphrey Abba, an indigene of Kogi state was a former member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In the administration of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, he was appointed into the cabinet where he served as minister in the Ministry of Police Affairs, commerce and internal affairs at different times. As police affairs minister in particular, under him the campaign against the use of tinted glasses on cars became more reinforced in view of the rising level of criminalities that time by which crimes were committed behind the screen. As a way of boosting the morale of policemen, under him too, a new pay package was approved for personnel of the force, but curiously, the authorities then refused to disclose the exact percentage of the increment.
Abba, until a few years ago, had a secret pain that not many knew until he opened up during a thanksgiving service in Abuja after the siege was broken. His marriage of over 23 years did not produce any child, a development he said his political enemies used to taunt him each time they had the opportunity. During the dedication service of the child in Abuja, he said, “I had always prayed to God for a day like this. My political opponents have used my childlessness to mock me. I have come across some people who initially were in the same camp with me, but because you did not do one thing or the other that they wanted you to do on the grounds of principle, they concluded by saying, “We are not surprised, after all he does not have a child.”
“You get that kind of jab,” he once revealed. Shortly after his party lost the 2015 election at the federal level, rumour had it that Abba joined the All Progressive Congress (APC), but he could not cope with the heat, therefore, went to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), but that was the last of him that was heard since then. It is not clear where he could be now.
