By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Alex A. Okoh has described the retiring Director of Development Institutions & Natural Resources (DI &NR) at the Bureau, Mr. Joe Chigbo Anichebe, as an honest and trustworthy person whose services would be missed by the Bureau.
The DG also commended two other retiring staff of the Bureau, Messrs Ibrahim Abubakar Jalingo,(Head, Human Resource Unit)and Abubakar Haruna of the Finance and General Services Department for their invaluable services to the Bureau.
Speaking at a farewell party in honour of Anichebe at the Bureau’s corporate offices in Abuja on Tuesday, Okoh said because of Anichebe’s trust and pedigree he had always delegated the director to represent the Bureau at impactful events.
He also said because of the director’s personality, “I seek his counsel on thorny issues most of the times and he never shies away from giving an honest and sincere opinion on issues no matter whose ox is gored”.
It was indeed, an evening of tributes for the retiring Anichebe, a consummate journalist and erstwhile Head of Public Communications at the Bureau, as the management, staff and other well-wishers, who graced the occasion, extolled his sterling qualities.
The Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN), FCT Chapter, one of the critical stakeholders of the Bureau, which was represented by its Secretary, Mr. Isa Abdulwahab, noted that Anichebe during his tenure as the Head of Public Communications at the Bureau, made the job of reporters covering the Bureau easy as he promptly provided answers to all inquiries.
A statement from the BPE Public Communication Unit on Thursday said Anichebe who was born in Owelli, Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu State on March 6, 1960, Anichebe proceeded to the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Accra, Ghana and graduated in 1984 with diploma in Journalism after attending Modebe Memorial Secondary School, Onitsha, Anambra State (1976-1981).
He obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Journalism from Howard University, Washington, DC and a certificate in General Management from the Harvard Business School (The General Manager Program), Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Certificate in Strategic Management from the University of South Africa (NISA).
Anichebe has held several positions both in the private and public sectors, including Reporter/Editorial Assistant, Punch Newspapers (1985-87); Co-founder, West Africa Press Syndicate (WAPS) and Sporting Africa Magazine, Accra, Ghana (1984-1985).
He was the Washington Bureau Chief of The Week Magazine from 1996-1999. He has reported for the Montgomery Journal, Rockville, Maryland and the Community News in Washington, DC. He served on the United Nations Observer Mission to South Africa in 1994 that supervised South Africa’s first ever all-race elections.
On the political front, he served as Communications Specialist with the Republican National Committee (RNC), Washington, DC. Before joining the BPE in 2000, the retiring director was a Case Management Specialist (CMS) with the State of Maryland Division of Corrections, Baltimore Maryland from 1996 to 2000.
He serves on several boards, including Member/Treasurer, Board of Trustees, Gede Foundation, a not for profit organisation with headquarters in Washington, DC. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists (Alpha Beta Chi), USA; National Association of Black Journalists, USA; International Organisation of Journalists (IOJ), Prague; and member, Institute of Directors (IOD), Nigeria.
For the two other staff who retired earlier, Okoh said they would be greatly missed by the Bureau.
He described the retiring Head, Human Resource Unit in particular as a great alumnus of the Bureau who worked with passion for the interest of the staff.
According to him, it takes a man with great composure and maturity to handle such a sensitive unit and said that on a personal note, he would miss Jalingo for his great sense of humor and interpersonal relationship. The DG prayed God to grant the retiring staff good health.
Jalingo who is leaving the Bureau after 35 years of active service with effect from November 15, 2019, was born on August 2, 1962 in the old Gongola State, now Taraba State.
He attended Mohammad Nya Primary School, Jalingo where he obtained his First School Leaving Certificate in 1967. He proceeded to the Rimi College, Kaduna to obtain his WASC in 1979.
The retiring Head, Human Resource Unit joined the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) on September 1, 2000 as a Chief Enterprise Officer (CEO) and is married with seven children.
For Haruna, he was born on May 1, 1960 and hails from Ganye Local Government Area of Adamawa State.
He joined the services of the Bureau on March 1, 2013 as an Enterprise Assistant II.
