President Bola Tinubu, former President Goodluck Jonathan, Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri, former governor Seriake Dickson and former BPSR Director-General Joe Abah have celebrated Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, on her retirement after 34 years in public service.
The dignitaries spoke on Tuesday in Abuja at the presentation of Walson-Jack’s books, Beyond the Mandate and I Planted, held to mark her retirement and 60th birthday.
Tinubu, represented by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Kingsley Udeh, commended Walson-Jack for purposeful service and institutional leadership.
He described the occasion as “a life of purposeful service, a career of institutional leadership, and a legacy being consciously built in the service of our nation.”
“Governments may change. Political leadership may change. Policies may evolve, but the machinery of government must retain the institutional memory, technical competence and discipline required to sustain the Nigerian state”, he said.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan described Walson-Jack’s appointment as Head of Service as historic for Bayelsa State, noting that she became the first Bayelsan to occupy the position.
“First, let me join Dickson and my governor to thank Mr President and convey appreciation to him for appointing our daughter, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, as the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation”, he said.
Governor Diri described her retirement as a celebration of her service and legacy.
“Bayelsans are proud of you. You planted in Rivers State. You planted in Bayelsa State. You watered in Abuja, and God gave the increase”, he said.
Former governor, Seriake Dickson, praised her professionalism and attention to detail, recalling their time working together in Bayelsa State.
“I was completely strange to office administration and management. But it was Didi Walson-Jack who had the duty of putting me through how to give administrative leadership to the ministry as Attorney-General”, he said.
Abah described the books as valuable accounts of public administration and institutional reform.
Walson-Jack said the books captured the experiences and lessons from her 34 years in public service.
“Thirty-four years is a long time to get trusted with people’s business. It is long enough to plant things, institutions, systems, people, and to watch some of them grow taller than you”, she said.
She added: “I planted. I obeyed, and I moved on”.
Walson-Jack thanked her colleagues, mentors, family and other stakeholders for supporting her career, saying the books would preserve lessons for future public servants.
