Gong irony
While working in Home Affairs, I requested Secretary Pezzullo’s permission to nominate the soon-to-retire Assistant Secretary of the Multicultural Affairs Branch for an Order of Australia award. She had spent some twenty years leading Australian multicultural policy and contributing to community relations, for which she was universally respected. She had her own remarkable migrant and personal journeys, contributed strongly to a local Canberra community organisation, and raised her children (I believe) as a single mother. A person of integrity, high standards and inspiring energy.
The Secretary’s response was a surprising ‘no’. He told me that excellent and dedicated public service is simply what is expected of all public servants and, besides, there is a separate award, the Public Service Medal, for public servants.
Interesting (perhaps even ironic) that he accepted an Order of Australia award for himself — and that it was taken away.
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