In my July 7 piece, Quiet Mondays, I discussed how noiseless some Mondays at the Presidential Villa can be. I drew parallels with other presidential palaces around the world, where leaders often dedicate their Mondays to “less public” affairs; about how many Mondays are as quiet as they can be, especially when the President has had an eventful past week or weekend.
The rest of the Villa community might reflect the typical bustling Monday mood. However, the closer you got to where the big man resided, the quieter it became — silence punctuated by bird chirps, peacock calls, and the rustling of leaves — an ideal environment for meditation.
Last week, however, was different. For one, the President met with his cabinet members after the previous week’s meeting was cancelled. He also oversaw a change of guard between the outgoing Head of Civil Service, Dr. Folashade Yemi-Esan, and her successor, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack. Call it a send-forth and inauguration ceremony and you won’t be too far from the truth.
While the transience-of-power narrative peaked last week after former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari walked past their once-occupied seats, the lessons began earlier for those in the Villa.
Yemi-Esan, who sat in her usual position—next to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation—bowed out of the Chamber amid applause as Walson-Jack took her place.
So, at 12:25 pm that afternoon, President Bola Tinubu entered the Council Chamber. After the national anthem and pledge, the SGF, George Akume, delivered a tribute to Yemi-Esan, who stood still, possibly reflecting on her nearly five-year tenure.
What thoughts were going through her mind at that moment? We may never know. Like Paul in the Bible, I guess she was thinking, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith…” (II Timothy 4:7, NIV). Having served in that office for the better part of five years, that is a likely thought.
After the SGF’s glowing remarks, the President expressed gratitude to the outgoing HoS and asked a funny question at the end. He said, “Dr. Folashade Yemi-Esan must be thanked for her exceptional tenure as Head of Service. We thank her for her commitment, duty and loyalty.
“As she steps down, we express our deep gratitude for her unwavering commitment to the service of her country. As we bid farewell to her, we are also here to swear in officially the new Head of Service, Mrs Didi Walson Jack.”
“Is she here?” the President asked, glancing across the room as though looking for a familiar face—she’d visited him only four days earlier.
However, his question filled the room with laughter at the thought of someone missing their inauguration ceremony at the peak of their civil service career.
I guess the President was accustomed to new officials seated at the centre of the Council Chamber before being sworn in. But looking in that direction and seeing an empty chair, he must’ve thought the new lady did not make it to her big day. That would’ve been a perfect case of what Nigerians call “Your village people finally won.”
Good for her, the new HoS, seated with her family on the left side of the Chamber, was ushered forward to take the oaths of office and allegiance. After ending both oaths with “So help me, God,” the President answered with a loud “Amen!”
He hopes her term in office will remain blemish-free and far from the American rapper Diddy, with whom she shares a homophonic name. He told her, “You’re stepping into very big shoes, and we pray that God continues to guide you, provide you with wisdom and enhance your integrity to serve this country and the civil service most successfully.”
Afterwards, the two women took photos with the President and hugged each other farewell as Yemi-Esan made her triumphal exit from the Chamber.
Two days later, a similar scene unfolded at the Council of State meeting, where two of Tinubu’s predecessors, Buhari and Jonathan, entered the same Chamber using a familiar doorway.
A photograph by Mr Calistus Ewelike, a photojournalist for the News Agency of Nigeria, perfectly captured that moment. In the image, Jonathan marches in front, followed closely by Buhari, both bearing a smile as they walk past the grand presidential seal on the wall.
Just 16 months earlier, that seal belonged to Buhari, and about 10 years ago, it was Jonathan’s. But now, it represents someone else’s authority. As they walked past the chair bearing the presidential seal, neither man glanced at it.
They avoided eye contact with the seat, much like Frodo would have avoided the temptation of staring at Sauron’s Ring in Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King.
Had either of them stolen the slightest glance at the chair, conspiracy theorists might have had enough fodder to chew on for weeks. But both men walked on, fully aware that the chair now belonged to another.
In my article on May 28, 2023, titled A Tale of Two Chief Tenants, I wrote, “Every occupant of the Aso Rock Villa is a tenant who must leave after their term expires. It’s Buhari’s turn to leave.” As Nigeria’s democracy ages, the current occupant will one day attend a Council of State meeting as a former President too.
https://punchng.com/when-tinubu-prayed-for-walson-jack-welcomed-former-tenants/?utm_source=rss.punchng.com&utm_medium=web
