As a former, albeit short term member of the Colonial Civil Service in what was
then called
Tanganyika, I enjoyed Roland's account of the book titled "Bwana Karani"
translated as
"Mister Clerk" in English. Now I am trying to get a copy of the book, so I can
read it in its entirety. One thing I remember about the Colonial Civil Service
is that instead of
"Yours faithfully" or "Yours Truly", all correspondence including from the
Governor himself
ended with the words "I am sir, your obedient servant" followed by the
signature. Quaint and reinforces the notion that Civil servants are servants
of the public, unlike these days in Goa.
As to Tony Barros's question, yes, this was the same Sir Richard Turnbull who
rose through the ranks of the Colonial Civil Service in East Africa from
District Commissioner to
Provincial Commisioner to Governor and eventually Governor General of newly
independent
Tanganyika. It wa he who in his capacity as Governor, cut the ribbon and
inaugurated the
new Goan Institute in Dar es Salaam, Tanganyika in December 1959. It was
through the petition of his former Goan secretary, that Sir Richard Turnbull
approved the issuance of
a work permit for me to re-enter Tanganyika in 1959, a gesture that I can never
forget.
Having worked with Goans for a long time he had a very high regard for Goans,
who were
the backbone of the Civil Service and Banking throughout East Africa in the
colonial era.
Now let me search for the book "Bwana Karani".............
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