THE LEADERSHIP PROBLEM IN NIGERIA

Peter Drucker defines a leader simply "as someone who has followers.” Warren Bennis sees “Leadership as the capacity to translate vision into reality.”Bill Gates once stated that “as we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”  John Maxwell however defined “Leadership as influence – nothing more, nothing less.” 

Whatever differences in opinion in the definition of a Leader/Leadership as postulated by the above scholars, the underlying fact even from their definition remains that a leader is someone who determines where others should go, thus he requires vision and integrity e.t.c. for effective leadership.

Leaders with vision inspire citizens and mobilize them for nation building. Leaders with crystal motives employ wisdom, foresight, sense of purpose and commitment, to galvanise a people towards self-actualisation and propel the national spirit in them. History throws up quite a few outstanding leaders, true heroes of their time, who set the moral and political tones for their societies. Such leaders as George Washington of America, Mahatma Gandhi of India, Winston Churchill of Britain, Charles De Gaulle of France, Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Lee Kwan Yew of Singapore and Nelson Mandela of South Africa, readily come to mind.

Without any doubt, if we want to survive as a nation, we must change our ways of producing leaders in every facet of our national life as Nigerians. We need a leader that is driven by knowledge, aspiration to unite our people across religion, ethnicity and all other differences, burning desire to reposition our society based on the capacity of citizens to discover their talents, respecting the values of the human person over and above any other thing and therefore recognising that the most fundamental asset of our nation is its citizens and to that extent not perceiving citizens as parasitic and the biggest liability.

In Nigeria today, leadership across the board from local to national level is all about the well-being of the leaders and their cronies and the entrenchment of their rules by crook means. Their misrule is also manifested in the spate of onslaughts against perceived opponents while in this process, the interests and well-being of the society is undermined or even ignored. This ought not to be so, as the purpose of leadership is about the well-being of the society.

Service has thus taken the backstage and the motivation for a spring to the public offices, both elective and opponent appears to the craze for ill-gotten wealth.

Today, the most lucrative vocation is politics. It is also the easiest means of making money. If anyone doubts this, such person simply needs to go through our daily newspapers as well as weekly magazines to read about the large-scale looting of the treasury by those entrusted with the leadership of this country, past and present. It is necessary for our public officers to take a cue from this and re-dedicate themselves to the nation and the people. The negative image of Nigeria amongst nations as having rogues and corrupt people will not abate until the leadership leads the way of living a life of transparency.

Several years after the advent of the civil rule, institutions of government in Nigeria are still in the hands of the rich and the powerful. The weak are left in the cold unprotected by government. This ought not to be so if we are really desirous of building a just society. It is important to note that late and former President Umaru Yar’adua was a ‘servant leader’ when in office and this is beyond the realm of slogans. We also hope that leaders at the lower level will henceforth have it in mind that out of millions of qualified Nigerians, they are in the position of authority by the permission of God.

They should therefore fulfil their aspect of the social contract by giving selfless service in accordance with their oath of office. Nigeria has been stagnated for too long and it is high time we all, and particularly those in leadership turned a new leaf so that the country can take its rightful position in the comity of progressive and forward looking nations of the world. When that time comes, Nigeria will be proud of their nationality unlike the current trend which breeds delusion.

REFERENCES:-Omojuwa , 
                               -George Ehusani, 
                               -Sahara reporter 
                               -Forbes