WATCHING the reports and tributes pouring out from CNN and other global media, I was overwhelmed by the huge impact, a simple philosophy of ‘ humility and forgiveness’ can have on the human race. It was so touching, to capture the noble traits of a man, who did not allow the circumstances of his birth and background, diminish his greatness.

He worked his way to the top, through a determined struggle for justice and equity; was prepared to pay the supreme price for his belief and indeed, suffered greatly in the hands of his apartheid oppressors. A man that was brutalised for 27 years in prison, came out and forgave all of his traducers; such display could only be found in the realm of the spiritual, especially as it concerns the activities of Jesus Christ.

At the height of his reign as president, Mandela wore his garb with simplicity and nobility; he never failed to acknowledge the fact that the success of the struggle was a collective one, praising the impact of his fellow freedom fighters. He will also claim, with humility, that he was human like every one of us and subject to the usual human frailties.

The icing on the cake was his decision to run for only a term as president when no pressure was being put on him to relinquish power.

For every view Mandela expressed, he did according to his conscience and not what the super powers want – the Palestinian/ Israel conflict, Gadaffi and Castro – were cases of note.

His carriage highlighted the fact that it is in humility that greatness is achieved. At his death bed, Mandela was arguably the greatest, single individual alive, enjoying the status reserved only for cult heroes and spiritual leaders. The turn-out of world leaders to honour him in death is a testament to this fact.

The world has taken note. Many leaders – Obama taking the lead – have promised to let Mandela’s legacy guide them but have we taken note in Nigeria?

Those of us, like Mandela, who came from poor backgrounds and now in positions of leadership, with all the perks of power, have we taken note? That it is not the arrogance or brutish display of power that brews greatness but simplicity and humility?

Those of us who have, through short cuts and the aid of government agents and machinery, found themselves in position of wealth and captains of industries, have we learnt anything from Mandela? That it is not the amount of money you accumulate or properties you pile up, that will bring you greatness but the sincerity of purpose?

Those of us, who have been privileged to enjoy government/community support scholarships, throughout their educational pursuit and are now in positions to impart knowledge to up-coming generations, have we learnt that with the right message, you can achieve greatness and not by intellectual intimidation?

Those of us who have been fortunate to be pioneers in our various professional bodies, through the opportunities provided by our society, have we learnt the lessons of sacrifice as exemplified by Mandela’s legacy? It goes on and on.

The legacy of Mandela, when placed and put in perspective with his Nigerian counterpart, dwarfs all of our own combined. It is like comparing an elephant to an ant.

Why do our leaders perform so badly? We have always attributed ethnic factors as the reason for poor performance, especially leadership at the national level. But Mandela’s South Africa is not only multi-ethnic but also multi-racial. Mandela was able to unite all of these diverse groupings without diminishing himself. He was able to accomplish this through leadership of example and selflessness.

The house that Mandela built in his village is a modest one, he refused the temptation to use government resources, even when he was prompted to do so. Everything about him was modest, both in his dress sense and taste.

How many of our present leadership, especially our political class can come up today and say:  “I was offered government money to do so and so thing, and I know it is not ethical, therefore, I am turning down the offer”.

How many of our members of the National Assembly can come out today and say: “All these allowances we are getting are not in tune with realities on ground, our people are suffering, let us instead, channel these funds to more beneficial projects like university education projects”. How many can come out to say:  “This foreign tour we are embarking on will not add any value to our legislative abilities and so the money should be channelled to-say-youth empowerment”?

How many of our present ministers, can come out and say:  “Look, the cars in my garage are too many, I do not need more than two, send the remaining ones to the pool”? How many of them can do this?

Can our President come out and say: “look, I do not need more than one or two aircraft for official business, the rest should be sent to the fleet of our soon-to-be established national carrier”. Can he?

Why can’t they do it like Mandela? It lies in the nature of man – selfish, wicked and brutish. Man’s character is only tempered by culture and culture is the aggregate of what a society wants or live by.

If a society is the lazy kind, with no desire for struggle and only waiting for miracles to happen, it will continue to produce such leadership like the ones we have now at all levels of government. On the other hand, if a society is conscious of the dignity of fellow citizens and what is sacred to the over all interest, it will resist the imposition of deviant leaders.

We have been a spoon-fed society. It is time for us to come to the realisation of what is expected of us, when we do that, our leaders will sit up. For now, they will be placed in the categories of dwarfs, when discussions are centred on the likes of Nelson Mandela and their contributions to mankind.

By Sunny Ikhioya, a commentator on national issues, wrote from Lagos.