A Founding Executive Director, African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development Centre (LSD), Dr Otive Igbuzor has established that election of visionary leaders will put Nigeria on the right path of progress. Igbuzor stated this while delivering a paper titled, “National Balance: Infrastructure, Institutional Capacity and Diversity as Tools for Building Blocs and Good Governance in Nigeria” at the 6th anniversary lecture of Penpushing Media held at new marquee events centre, Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, Ogun State Capital......Read The Full Article>>.....Read The Full Article>>
The keynote speaker pointed out that national balance is imperative for nation building, sustainable development and good governance in Nigeria, stressing that this can be achieved through strengthening infrastructure, enhancing institutional capacity and embracing diversity.
“This has not happened in Nigeria because of lack of visionary political leadership. A visionary political leadership will put in place a comprehensive long-term strategy to develop infrastructure, build institutional capacity and manage diversity,” he stated.
He emphasized that a visionary leadership will arouse the people to mobilise the resources and ensure proper use of the resources to develop the country, adding that visionary leadership will address corruption in a holistic manner.
The guest lecturer said such leaders will be guided by legislative framework for transparent and accountable government; political will and commitment to fight corruption; comprehensive strategy that is systematic, comprehensive, consistent, focused, publicized, nonselective and non-partisan; protection of Whistle blowers.
He said this includes political reform to curb political corruption, especially election rigging; reform of substantive programmes and administrative procedures; mobilisation for social re-orientation; independent media; adequate remuneration for workers to reflect the responsibilities of their post and a living wage.
The academic added that visionary leaders will consider code of ethics for political office holders, business people and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs); independent institutions especially electoral, human rights and gender commissions and a movement for anti-corruption.
“A visionary leadership will put in motion strategies and ideas to promote re-orientation, discipline, restructuring, constitutional amendment, inclusive governance, new security architecture and new ways of doing things. A visionary leader will lead the country to go back to the fundamentals of discipline, patriotism, identification, census, street address, merit, tax, Integrity, etc,” he added.
“The challenge therefore is how do we produce a visionary political leadership for Nigeria? The first thing is that we must recognise that there is no lack of leadership in Nigeria. What we lack is political leadership. Nigerians are providing leadership across the world, and they are acknowledged globally to be doing well.”
“Amina Mohammed is providing excellent leadership as Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations. Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is providing a well acknowledged leadership at the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Dr. Akinwumi Adesina is providing transformative leadership at the African Development Bank as President. Comrade Ayuba Wabba was President of the International Trade Union Confederation from 2018 to 2022 and discharged his leadership role creditably well,” he noted.
“Dr. Osahon Enabulele, a past President of Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has just concluded his tenure as President of World Medical Association. Alhaji Aliko Dangote is providing leadership in the business world. Even when the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) goes for international assignment, they provide leadership and come back in flying colours,” he added.
“Nigerians are providing leadership in academics, medicine, pharmacy, law, accounting, sports, music, creative arts and indeed in all facets of human endeavours. But we have allowed ourselves to be governed by the worst amongst us.
“In order to change this, the first step is to interrogate the political leadership recruitment process in Nigeria. We cannot continue to allow the worst amongst us to be our political leaders at all levels,” Igbuzor emphasised.
“The only way to counteract this is to participate actively in politics. We must jettison the notion that politics is dirty and stay away. Plato counsels us that “if you refuse to participate in politics, you will be governed by your inferiors.” Edmund Burke warned us that “for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”
“Frantz Fanon admonished us that “the future will have no pity for those men (and women) who, possessing the exceptional privilege of being able to speak the words of truth to their oppressors, have taken refuge in an attitude of passivity, of mute indifference, and sometimes of cold complicity.” Frantz Fanon was categorical when he stated that “every onlooker is either a coward or a traitor.”
“The second thing is for all well-meaning people in Nigeria to get involved in building transformative leaders. Leadership has been recognised as one of the most important variables that affect the performance of any organisation, institution or nation.”
“Study after study, superior financial and organisational performance, as well as other forms of success, have been linked to leadership. Scholars have opined that the success or failure of organisations and nations depends on leadership excellence and not managerial acumen.”
“It has been documented that the progress, development and fortunes of many nations are tied to the type and quality of the political leadership that they have had and continue to have,” the keynote speaker stated.
“In a recent survey of 1,767 experts across the world, 86 percent of the respondents agreed that the world is facing a leadership crisis. According to Myles Munroe, the world is filled with followers, supervisors and managers but very few leaders.
“Chinua Achebe argued that “the trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership. There is nothing basically wrong with the Nigerian Character. There is nothing wrong with the Nigerian land or climate or water or air or anything else.
“But scholars have documented that scourges of bad leadership and signs of darkened mood are everywhere in Nigeria. Despite the recognition that Leadership is crucial for the development of organisations and nations and that leaders can be trained.
“There is leadership potential in every person. Despite this universal latent ability, very few individuals realise this power, and fewer still have responded effectively to the call. As a result, our nations, societies and communities are suffering from an astounding leadership void.
“Therefore, one big idea that can push Nigeria and indeed Africa forward is to build transformative leadership. The third thing is to organise a movement for change. There is an elite capture of the state. This is not what can be corrected by a few people.
“What we need is a movement. We have always argued that change will happen in any society when the conditions are ripe. In our view, for change to occur in any society requires the presence of objective and subjective conditions.
“Objective conditions exist when situations are evidently abnormal with huge contradictions which can only be resolved by change. The subjective conditions are the organizational preparations required to bring about change.
“There is no doubt that the objective conditions for change have been existing in Nigeria for a very long time. There is high level of poverty in the midst of plenty. Corruption is widespread, endemic and stifling progress. The wealth of the country is concentrated in the hands of a few.
“There is social disintegration with high levels of promiscuity and divorce. Rape is on the increase. There are several cases of incest. There is high level of greed, selfishness and nepotism. The state of affairs is not sustainable.
“The challenge has been the absence of the subjective conditions with the requisite organization and platform to mobilize for social change. The minimum programme for the movement should be proper governance of Nigeria to make things work. The movement should advocate for resetting the country and going back to the fundamentals to reduce selling of influence, nepotism and corruption.
“The final thing is to form a developmentalist coalition of Nigerians across board to push for nation building, sustainable development and good governance. As Omano Edigheji has argued, throughout history, the ideology of development nationalism has been a major impetus for national development, especially in late developers (such as China, Malaysia, Mauritius, South Korea and Singapore) that wants to “catch-up”.
“For Nigeria, he argues that: Among other things, this calls for the creation of a developmentalist coalition that is made up of a few political elite, the top echelon of the bureaucracy and patriotic business elite.
“Given the diverse ethnoreligious composition of Nigeria, efforts should be made to ensure that the developmental coalition comprises of people from the various ethnic and religious groups. This could be the basis to build a truly united country, as a sure guarantee to overcoming the ethno-religious conflicts that have plagued the country.
“The developmental coalition should be an elite group united mainly by the need for Nigeria’s development, and consequently they have to be highly nationalistic and patriotic. In light of this, transforming the structure of the Nigerian economy, and consequently, enhancing its productive capacity should constitute the primary objective of the developmentalist coalition.
“To this would require that promotion of industrial development should be accorded a national priority. A first step in this regard will be the formulation of an industrial policy, which among other things will identify industries for government support with clear targets, including technological upgrading, adaption and innovation, job creation and export requirements.”
The keynote speaker pointed out that a patriotic nationalist developmentalist coalition with a shared vision for national development can counteract the elite capture that citizens are currently witnessing in Nigeria.
