The Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) has celebrated three retired directors due to their unblemished, satisfactory, and committed service to humanity.
The Executive Secretary of FCDA, Mr. Shehu Ahmad, who said this on Friday during the event in Abuja, said the retirees were being celebrated as members of the FCDA family and for their contributions to the development of the federal capital.
The retirees are Mr. Isah Abdullahi, retired Director, Legal Services; Mr. Bello Tunau, retired Director, Department of Engineering Design and Evaluation; and Mr. Adebowale Ademo, retired Director, Public Building.
Ahmad said, “The FCDA had and has always operated as a family. So, when a family member gets to the terminal point of his career, it is only fair that the family come together and celebrate his exit.
“The gentlemen we are celebrating today have unblemishedly, satisfactorily, and committedly served their fatherland and have been here for 35 years, knowing nothing other than coming to serve in the FCDA.
“So, the maximum part of their lives has been spent in service here, and I think there is every reason for everyone to be happy for them, that they have exited honourably and unblemished too.”
On whether FCDA should be worried about the retirees leaving, the executive secretary said, “We have every reason to worry.
“This is because these are gentlemen who have gone through all the rudiments of training and have acquired all the skills and expertise in their various fields that the service needs.
“But the only good thing about it is that they had, in the course of their service, trained a lot of their subordinates.
“So, there is a very reasonable succession arrangement, which for us is a comforting thing.”
The executive secretary advised the retirees to float consultancy outfits, make their doors open, and make their expertise available for the FCDA to consult.
He also advised their successors to learn from their challenges and build on their successes to move FCDA forward.
One of the retirees, Ademo, described his years of service in the FCDA as very fulfilling, leaving the service as a fulfilled man.
He promised that his doors would be opened to support the development of the federal capital.
“We believe that success without a successor is not good enough.
“We’ve been very deliberate and intentional in grooming those that we have served together to be able to do the things we have been able to do and even better,” he said.
The story was the same for Abdullahi, who described his retirement as the best moment of his life due to the specialised training and expertise acquired in legal drafting.
“I handled a lot of bills that are now functional in the FCTA.
“The FCT Internal Revenue Service Law is one of the laws that I saw through, and today, it is one of the agencies of the FCTA that is vibrant.
“There is also the FCT College of Education (COE) Law that established the capital college of education, Zuba, and several others.
“Today, we are talking about the FCT Civil Service Commission. It is also one of the laws that I drafted and is currently on the verge of being implemented,” he said.
He stressed that such specialised training and skills cannot be taken away from him, adding that it would keep him going through the years of retirement.
On his part, Tunau said he had fully prepared for the retirement, saying, “I am a professional. So, I will continue my practice.
“There is no idle time anymore; life continues in or out of service.” (NAN)
