MR G. McNAMARA TO RETIRE

Press, Volume LXXV, Issue 22656, 10 March 1939, Page 16

MR G. McNAMARA TO RETIRE

POST AND TELEGRAPH DIRECTOR TRIBUTE TO ABILITY BY POSTMASTER-GENERAL (press association telegram.) WELLINGTON, March 9. The retirement of Mr G. McNamara, Director-General of the Post and Telegraph Department, has been announced by the Postmaster-General, the Hon. F. Jones. Mr McNamara will begin his leave on retirement on March 31. when he will have completed 42? years’ service. “I would like to take this opportunity of expressing my appreciation of the action of Mr McNamara in agreeing to the Government’s request to continue in his position after giving notice of his intention to retire on completion of 40 years’ service,” said Mr Jones in an interview. “It was felt that his long and varied experience would be of great benefit to the Government in connexion with his own department, and that he would also be able to render helpful advice on other departmental and allied matters. At his own request the position was again reviewed in August last and he was asked to retain his position till the end of this month. “Since my appointment as Post-master-General, I have been in close personal touch with Mr McNamara, and I can testify without hesitation to his organising ability and to his possession of a wonderful knowledge of the various branches of the great department of which he has been permanent head for so many years. It is to me a matter of regret' that the Government and the country are soon to lose his valuable services in an official capacity, and I trust that he will long enjoy his retirement.” Career in Department Till the expiration of the leave on retirement of Mr McNamara, his position will be automatically filled under the law by the Deputy-Director-Gen-eral, Mr J. G. Young, who was appointed to his present position on November 1 last. Mr McNamara was born m Invercargill in 1881. He was educated at Park School, and on the conclusion ot his primary course he studied for some time under the Rev. James Henry. He entered the Post and Telegraph Department in 1896 and has served in every branch of the service. After a year on the counter side in Dunedin, he was transferred in 1908 to the General Post Office in Wellington, where he was associated with Mr A. T. Markman, the former secretary of the Post and Telegraph Department, in staff work till 1920, when he was appointed second assistant secretary. On Mr Markman’s retirement Mr McNamara succeeded him as secretary. The title of the office was later changed to that of director-general. Mr McNamara accompanied the Hon. Adam Hamilton, then PostmasterGeneral, to Sydney in 1935 to discuss the preliminaries of the Empire air mail scheme, and subsequently attended a conference in Wellington at which Britain and Australia were represented. Mr McNamara was New Zealand s representative at the Imperial Cables and Wireless conference in London in 1937, when the opportunity was taken of advancing the Empire air service between England and New Zealand.