When the appointment of Sir Joseph Ari as the DirectorGeneral of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) was announced exactly one year ago today, I said to myself: “Th is is one big cap into which his head would vanish.
” I came to the conclusion because I had followed the succession to the headship of the massive organisation for decades.
In fact, the outfi t was in its infancy when I relocated from Zaria to Jos to take up an appointment with Th e Nigeria Standard Newspaper.
So, I had the opportunity of following the metamorphosis of the Fund ever since until I relocated to Abuja about a decade ago.
However, I came closer to the ITF during the tenure of Alhaji Hassan Ahmed II when he became the director-general in the early 90s.
Currently the Emir of Nasarawa, Alhaji Hassan Ahmed II was a hard core technocrat as far back as during the military administration of the late J. D. Gomwalk in Plateau state where he was then the director of protocols, and gradually worked his way to the top. By the mid-70s, he served as the commissioner for Information in the old Plateau state.
He also served as the director of administration at the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, near Jos.
It was from that position that he was catapulted to ITF as the director-general.
Before and after Hassan Ahmed II, quite a handful of seasoned administrators had sat in the saddle in the 46 years of the organisation.
Sir Ari, who was just 11 years old when the ITF was founded, is perhaps the youngest man to head the outfit.
His much older predecessors had left behind caps of diff erent sizes… mostly big ones, you would imagine.
So, when Sir Joseph Ari (fondly called Joe Ari by his buddies and colleagues) was considered next to wear the seemingly larger than life cap, I became curious.
Th ese are my reasons: Joe Ari has been a close friend of about three decades.
I can say I know him the way the hand knows the route to the mouth even in the dark.
We are both Knights of the Pen except that he has gone a step or two further.
I have not. Joe is a Knight of St Mulumba (KSM).
My relationship with Joe kicked off at the time he began his broadcasting peregrinations with the Plateau Broadcasting Corporation as a News Reporter/ Presenter.
He sojourned at the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Lagos, as a Newscaster and subsequently moved over to the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) as a News Editor/Caster.
He was later to veer off the mainstream broadcasting into the public relations realm, becoming the Public Relations Manager (North) of the National Insurance Corporation of Nigeria (NICON).
When Sir Fidelis Tapgun became the governor of Plateau state under the tortuous IBB transition programme in the early 90s, Joe was brought back to Jos to serve as his Director of Press and Public Aff airs.
And that was when he dazzled us with his oratory prowess at various occasions he had to anchor.
His command of the English language and ability to manipulate it to convey his messages were captivating.
But he got stuck at one of such occasions when the Plateau Publishing Company (PPC) Ltd.
, publishers of Th e Nigeria Standard Newspapers, celebrated the 20th anniversary of its existence.
Joe as the anchor man was, as usual, armed to the mouth with his captivating oration but he was looking for something unique to say about the occasion.
Th en he sighted me and pulled me aside. “Oga Clem, I know you are a pioneer of the paper.
Can you tell me one unique thing about it that people don’t know?” he asked.
As if I had anticipated the question, I told him that one thing that stood Th e Nigeria Standard out as a newspaper was that it had bred many brilliant professionals serving in virtually all the newspapers in the country at the time.
I reeled out a few names that included Gideon Barde, Dan Agbese, George Ohemu, Bagudu Hirse, Lekan Akinola, Joel Pwol, Richard Umoru, Joe Ishaku, Joe Angulu, Sale Iliya and my humble self to mention just a mouthful.
Joe Ari was later to be appointed to head the same organisation as the general manager.
It was during his tenure at the PPC that he decided to read Law at the University of Jos where he bagged his LL.B and later LL.M degrees.
A few years later, he found himself in his familiar terrain… broadcasting.
He was reassigned to the Plateau Radio and Television Corporation (PRTV) as the general manager where he brought his rich knowledge to bear on the organisation.
He thus set a record as the fi rst Plateau indigene to pilot the state’s media outfi ts at diff erent times.
Joe’s career in the Plateau State Civil Service came to an apogee when he was appointed Permanent Secretary in charge of Government House Administration, a position he held until his appointment by the Federal Government as a Deputy Director in the Department of Public Relations, External Aff airs and Publicity of the ITF, a grade ‘A’ Federal Government Parastatal under the aegis of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.
Upon returning to his second love (public relations), he as the Head of Public Aff airs introduced the re-branding philosophy which saw members of staff re-oriented to provide quality services for clients of the Fund.
Th e policy also engaged external stakeholders, thus paving the way for increased support and collaboration for smooth implementation of the ITF Act.
Sir Ari was also at diff erent times the Director of Administration and Human Resources Department, Corporate Planning Department and the Business Training Development Department at the ITF Headquarters.
He is also a onetime Chairman of the Fund’s Training and Research Committee (T&RC) of Management.
He is a member of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), a member of the Nigerian Institute of Management, member of the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), a Fellow of the Corporate Administration Institute and a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).
Recently, he concluded two terms as a member of the Institute’s Governing Council. In the last 365 days that Joe has been in the saddle, his head has grown in size, literally, to prove that the 46 years old cap he inherited is not too big for him.
Joe has also proved that he is not in the organisation to serve a Barmecide Feast.
According to the Arabian Nights, a story is told of a stupendously rich man named Barmecide who invited his friend to dine with him. Dishes were served in due order but there were no victuals in them.
Barmecide pretended to be eating and his guest had the courtesy of imitating him.
Th e guest was later rewarded with a variety of meals in appreciation of his great sense of humour.
It was from this account that Barmecide Feast was coined, meaning a banquet where there is nothing to eat.
Joe manifested on the ITF scene with dishes of innovations too numerous to mention in this limited space.
He has also introduced several result-oriented programmes.
Small wonder, the organization reeled them out in a two-page advertorial published in this newspaper yesterday.
Judging by the rate my good friend is going about piloting the organisation, I have no doubt that he will, at the end of the day, leave a legacy that would be diffi cult to match let alone surpass.
I wish him more successes in his service to Nigeria.
