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Perspective

By Joseph Lunani

I dedicate this perspective column to acknowledge and celebrate a firebrand civil servant who walked in our wake, the Late PS David Symon Obonyo Nalo, CBS. He, up to his demise, was a decorated high-ranking civil servant in the Kenyan Government serving as the Permanent Secretary for East African Community Affairs.

As a form two student at Kakamega High School, I met a neighbour, Emmanuel Dennis Ngongo, who at that time was a form four student at Kolanya Boys High School. This gentleman called out the leader in me. He spoke of virtues, values and ethos that as humans we should live by. Especially take the lead when bestowed the responsibility of guiding others as heads of institutions or the community. He spoke with clarity and passion.

At that time, I was a house prefect and the things he spoke about made a lot of sense. He sparked the urge to reflect on what I was doing in my leadership as a person and the role I was serving. He did this with love and as a true Christian, shone his light and brought taste to my path. I am pleased to report that my service as a prefect improved, culminating in my appointment as Entertainment Prefect and later the school Head Boy.

It is within the auspices of the National Youth Convention and the youth leaders’ meetings that I first encountered the Late PS David Nalo. It was therefore not a surprise to join the deliberations as invited by Emmanuel, together with other young leaders across the country, as Kenya prepared to host the Youth Empowerment Summit of 2006. As the dialogue built towards that occasion, my understanding of issues of leadership deepened, and the pursuit to make Kenya better, starting from wherever we found ourselves, became a passion.

The youth consultations gave birth to the ministerial youth roundtables, with PS David Nalo as one of the architects. He welcomed many of us to his office and encouraged us to document our ideas. He also found time to socialise with each of us at a personal level, where we formed deep connections. It is from these interactions that I would like to share the leadership lessons I picked up.

There are leadership personalities who have risen to high-stakes roles and are celebrated in good measure. There is David Symon Obonyo Nalo, fondly referred to as PS Nalo or just“ ND” by staff in the Ministry of Planning, the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of East African Community.

You may not have heard of his name, as he was not a headline-chaser or a public relations stuntman. He was something far more rare; a quiet, intelligent, brilliant and down-to-earth architect of a nation’ s future. He carried around him a contentedness and sure-footed approach that was disarming and contagious. He had a stern face but a welcoming smile and an understanding gaze accompanied by a reassuring firm handshake.

He would welcome you in his office and leave his desk full of files, books and documents to attend to you in a manner that made you feel counted and that he had spared precious quality time. You see, he enjoyed serving his guests, so he would pour you a cup of tea, coffee, or water, whatever your preference or appetite called for, and according to what was available.

Permanent fixture on his desk and always within reach were two versions of the Bible- the King James Version and the Amplified Bible. He did not just quote scripture but reflected deeply on the principles and tried his best to live as a devout Christian. Not in a charismatic manner but with conviction- when you interacted with him, he did not need to tell you that he was a Christian and a Catholic at that. That just sprang out in a likeable manner as he held his own in a good gesture.

Pushing for excellence with tough love. He could write a letter and have it revised more than seven times. His secretaries knew this and came to adapt to changes as he always held the mantra that“ change is inevitable” and perspective changes with consultations, knowledge and political innuendo.

As a civil servant per excellence and Permanent Secretary across Kenya’ s most powerful economic ministries, PS Nalo was the steady hand drafting the blueprints, crunching numbers informed by data and building the institutions he served, knowing too well that they would outlive him. His leadership was not loud; it was effective.

In an age of flashy announcements and fleeting trends, David Nalo’ s career is a masterclass in the timeless science and art of getting big things done. He did not give TED talks; he gave Kenya his best thoughts, ideas and work ethic; he gave Kenya Vision 2030. Forget the generic leadership gurus; ND served with a dose of elegance and wit as he preferred data data-driven strategy over dramatic PR stunts.

Here are seven leadership reflections that spring out in my interactions and case study of the man David Nalo.

Lead with Evidence, Not Ego

Nalo understood that a vision without data is just a hallucination. As Director of the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, he did not just manage spreadsheets; he waged

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