An Account of Meritorious stewardship for CPP Obua

Newly retired Comptroller, Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Zone A, Lagos State Border Patrol Command, Chukwuememka Patrick Pius (CPP) Obua, popularly referred to as CPP Obua, in this interview with Sunday Ehigiator, reflects on his time in active service, achievements, and accolades gotten from the NIS Comptroller-General, Isah Jere Idris (MFR), during his ceremonial ‘Pullout Parade’

Let us meet you?

My name is Chukwuemeka Patrick Pius Obua, and I am an Immigration Officer. However, my family and close friends usually address me as CPP Obua. Similarly, my bosses, colleagues, and subordinates use the same name when addressing me.

I currently hold the position of Comptroller in charge of the Lagos State Border Patrol Unit. I am proud to say that I graduated from the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University, fondly called Uni-Ife, where I studied and obtained a degree in International Law and Diplomacy.

Furthermore, I proceeded to the University of Jos, where I obtained a Master’s Degree in the same field of study. Overall, I am a dedicated and knowledgeable Immigration Officer who is passionate about upholding the laws and regulations of my country.

How do you feel about your retirement?

Having served for 35 years in the Immigration Service, I can confidently say that it has been a fulfilling journey. I devoted a significant part of my youth to this service, and I am grateful for the opportunity to serve my country.

Though the journey was not always smooth sailing, and there were times when our advancement was slow and tortuous, I am happy that I persevered. I owe a debt of gratitude to my superiors for their support and guidance throughout my career. I am also grateful to God for granting me the zeal to put in my best despite the distractions here and there.

At the parade ground, during my retirement ceremony, the Comptroller General himself, Idris Isah Jere MFR, read a wonderful citation, which speaks for itself. I am glad that my contributions to the service have been recognized, and I feel fulfilled.

I believe that I have put in my best, and I am content with the recognition I have received from the service. As I retire, I look forward to spending more time with my family and pursuing other interests.

What would you consider as your greatest achievement in service?

Throughout my career in the service, I dedicated myself to two passions that paid off significantly. Firstly, I had a strong desire to project a positive image of the service. As a young officer, I established a newsletter and a welfare program, which later became a cooperative society.

My motivation for creating the welfare program was the realization that many public servants were poorly paid, which was a form of modern-day slavery. I noticed that this meagre salary often led some officers to engage in criminal activities to make ends meet. This observation prompted me to advocate for a saving culture that would enable officers to weather financial storms in the future.

Through my work with the welfare and cooperative society, I was able to provide officers with financial education, counselling, and investment opportunities. I am glad that I was able to make a positive impact on the lives of many officers and their families.

Secondly, I had a passion for achieving national recognition in my career. Through hard work and dedication, I was able to achieve this goal. My efforts were recognized by the service, and I received numerous awards for my outstanding service.

I am proud of the work I have done in the service. I believe that my contributions have made a significant difference in the lives of many officers, and I am grateful for the opportunities I had to serve my country.

Throughout my career in the service, I dedicated my efforts to two passions that paid off at the national level. Firstly, I was appointed as the Public Relations Officer of the NIS from 2013-2015.

As an image maker and spokesperson, I went above and beyond to create a monthly newspaper that later evolved into a monthly magazine. I even secured an international library number for it, which is referenced in my citation. Secondly, I was passionate about establishing welfare and cooperative societies for public servants, as I believed they were poorly paid, which could lead to dire consequences.

With the support of Controller General David Shikfu Parradang OFR, MNI, CGI (RTD.), we established the most sustainable, enduring, and multipurpose cooperative society for the officers, which has been instrumental in supporting them.

One of the high points of my service was setting up the national cooperative society. In the entire 50 years of Immigration, we had never had a national cooperative society until then. Even after my retirement, I have already received my benefits from the cooperative society, before the government starts to verify if I am eligible to receive retirement funds. This has been a significant benefit for me.

When we started the cooperative society in Ogun State, we had to send the President of Ogun State, who had experience in managing such societies, to the Service Headquarters to replicate what they had done there. I belonged to two cooperative societies, one in Ogun State and the national one, and I have received my benefits from both. These cooperative societies have been a source of support and motivation for me, and they will continue to keep me going until the government begins to pay me my retirement funds.

Do you have any regrets?

In every career, there are bound to be regrets and certain things that could have been done differently. Looking back on my career, I realized that I did not push enough for some reforms that were important to me. Although I made some memos, I did not follow up on them. The heads of public services are very busy, and unless you show enough passion, likely, your ideas will not be given proper attention.

One of my biggest regrets is not pushing enough for the proper restructuring of the service in terms of staff disposition and schedule of duty. I also regret not creating more vacancies by expanding our services, as it seemed to be over-centralized. These are deep regrets for me, and I believe that they should have been the icing on the cake of my career.

However, even though I am retired, I am not tired. There are certain things that I could not do because of precedence and hierarchy, but now that I am out of service, I believe I will be able to do them better. I am determined to make a positive impact in these areas that I could not before.

What an accolade from the NIS Comptroller General, were you surprised?

I am not in any way surprised by the compliments and praises given to me by the Comptroller General. It’s not because I am being immodest, but rather because he holds me in high regard.

He calls me ‘The Engine Room’ because he believes that we set the pace and agenda in this service. And whatever we say and do, moves the service forward. We are the ones that have moved the service in multiple ways. He has been expressing this sentiment both privately and publicly for a while now, so it was not unexpected.

As a family man in very active service, how are you able to achieve a work-life balance?

I want to put it on record so that you can see how I relate with my staff. When I relate with them, I’m always on their neck to get it right and all. I am a disciplinarian, and at times I take it to the family. It hasn’t been easy, despite their support and cooperation.

I have been away for most of the time and I keep telling officers that if I am at my duty post and they tell me that my wife is sick or admitted, what my wife needs is medical attention, not the attention of an immigration officer.

My ugly or fine face is not going to add any value to her condition. What doctors need is money, and how will the money come if I am absent from my duty post and I go AWOL?

Any officer will have it hot with me if they tell me they didn’t come early or stayed more than the allowed period for casual or annual leave because of their child or wife. They need to earn a living so they can add value to their lives. I have never seen that as an excuse.

I must put bread on my table, and I don’t do that by playing ‘sisi’ and saying sorry to my wife. Sorry, won’t pay for school fees or cure her illness. If I continue to miss my duty post, I will keep getting queried. And if the days are so much, they will deduct it from my salary, dimiNIShing the meagre salary I have to be able to solve the problem at hand.

My priorities are set very clearly, and I am focused on them. I don’t let family pressure or family calling stand between me and my job. My job is my priority, as it gives me my dignity and the professional respect I am enjoying. People are singing about the CPP brand, and it derives from there, so it’s the number one priority. If I miss it, I have missed everything.

Now that you have left the service, what area would you consider needs an improvement in the NIS?

I must be sincere with you about the issues that plague immigration and public service agencies. The first issue is leadership succession. There is a lack of clear-cut leadership succession plans, which causes disruptions in the system.

Sometimes tenure elongation occurs due to the lack of suitable successors. While some people may blame the president for this elongation, it’s often because there are no qualified candidates to take over from the retiring officer. Without proper leadership succession plans, the public service is at risk of collapsing. This issue is not unique to the NIS but is prevalent across other security agencies as well.

The second issue is mentorship. This is another area where there is a lack of attention in the public service. The lack of capable hands to take over from retiring officers is due to the absence of mentorship programs. As a leader, you have failed if you cannot identify at least four people who can take over from you when you retire. You must mentor people who can do things like you do, and whom you can groom to be your alter ego. Unfortunately, people in Africa tend to hoard their talents and gifts, when these abilities are meant to be shared for the betterment of humanity.

Mentorship is vital to public service because it helps to develop a pool of qualified leaders who can take over when the current crop retires. If you can’t point to anyone you have mentored, then you have failed as a leader. In the past, we had super permanent secretaries like Udoji and Allison Madueke, who were technocrats of their time. However, they did not mentor anyone, which is why we don’t have many people like them today. We need to have mentorship programs in place to groom the next generation of leaders.

Leadership succession and mentorship are two critical areas that need attention in public service. Without proper plans in place, the public service will continue to struggle, and we risk losing the gains made in the past. As leaders, we must focus on developing the next generation of leaders by grooming and mentoring them. This will ensure that we have a pool of capable hands to take over when the current crop of leaders retires.

How can these issues be addressed?

One possible way to resolve the issues with leadership succession and mentorship in the Nigerian Immigration Service and public service is a complete overhaul of the system.

This is not a new problem as past administrations, including that of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, have attempted to reform the public service, but have not been successful in making significant changes. The lack of political willpower and the fear of losing their jobs have contributed to the resistance to change.

There is a report by one of the Heads of Service about how to reform the service and bring it up to the standard it used to be some years back. However, this report has not been implemented, and it continues to gather dust. To reform the service, it will require a significant effort, such as weeding out bad eggs and separating the goats from the sheep, and the wheat from the chaff. People may resist change because they are afraid of losing their jobs.

It is essential to prioritize leadership succession and mentorship in public service to develop the next generation of leaders who can continue to steer the organization forward. This requires identifying and grooming potential successors and developing programs that promote mentorship and collaboration across different levels of the organization. Only through a concerted effort can the public service be transformed and made more efficient and effective in serving the citizens of Nigeria.

Now that you have been pulled out from service, what’s next for you?

I have dedicated a significant portion of my life to the field of migration management and my ultimate goal is to become a migration management consultant.

I intend to establish a legally recognized consultancy firm that can assist companies in their expatriate employment processes while ensuring that they comply with the Immigration Act of 2015. I am passionate about this line of work and have recognized a significant gap in the industry, as there is a shortage of experts in this field.

As a migration consultant, my primary focus will be to ensure that companies can successfully manage their expatriate employees while avoiding any legal complications that may arise. I believe that this is an area where I can make a significant contribution, and I am committed to pursuing this career path once I leave my current role in the immigration service.

Outside the NIS, who is CPP Obua?

I am a person who loves life and enjoys travelling. Fortunately, my bosses recognize this passion of mine and they ensure that I travel frequently outside the country, not only for leisure but also for courses. I believe that changing environments and meeting new people add value to one’s knowledge and personal growth.

Thanks to my job, I have been able to attend several courses, and I am an ISO lead auditor and implementer. I attended some of these courses in Kenya, Turkey (shortly before the earthquake occurred), India, Switzerland, and many other countries. I have gained a lot of experience and knowledge from these travels.

Aside from travelling and learning, I am also a sports enthusiast. I enjoy participating in various sports activities during my free time. Overall, I am a jolly good fellow who loves life and is always eager to explore new places and ideas.