By Omoh Gabriel

Certainly the great challenge facing Nigeria today is that of leadership. Leadership at all levels, in government, public sector institutions and businesses run by Nigerians lack effective leadership. Most are there either by chance or through godfatherism.

Many have no idea what makes a leader. Instead of getting things done the right way, Nigerian leaders cut corners to achieve perceived success that is not deep-rooted. The Nigerian economy is where it is today because of leadership failure.

No matter the pretence by some past leaders, they have grossly failed the nation. Some have openly pursued their personal interest at the expense of the general good of the people. Many leaders were begged to lead, who had no idea of how to develop the nation’s resources. Successful leaders do not start out asking; What do I want to do? They ask, What needs to be done? Then they ask, of the things that would make a difference, which are right for the nation? They don’t tackle things they are not good at. They make sure other necessities get done, but not by them.

This is the bane of the Nigerian elite. They want to take credit for everything good and do not see the strength in others. They surround themselves with those who hero-worship them and sing their praises not those who have the capacity to get things done.

The famous management expert, Peter Druker said that “successful leaders make sure that they succeed.” They are not afraid of the strength in others. Andrew Carnegie wanted to put on his gravestone, “Here lies a man who knew how to put into his service more able men than he was himself. If Nigerian leaders were sensitive to the needs of the people, they will appoint to positions of responsibility men and women who have the capacity, knowledge and drive to deliver on their assignment. But what do you find? You discover that mediocres who can only do the bidding of their masters get appointed.

Effective leaders check their performance. They write down what they hope to achieve if they take on the assignment. They put away their goals periodically and then review their performance against the goals. This way, they find out what they do well and what they do poorly. They also find out whether they picked the truly important things to do. There are many Nigeriann leaders who are exceedingly good at execution, but exceedingly poor at picking the important things. They are magnificent at getting the unimportant things done. They have an impressive record of achievement on trivial matters. Do Nigerian political leaders ever take stock of their performance? Do they ever move around the country to see what has been done and not done in order to take corrective measures? It is only during electioneering campaign that presidential candidates and those aspiring to become governors move around begging for votes. Once elected, they never feel the pulse of the electorate until the next election. How then will they know how the people are faring? That is why they are always out of touch with reality. They hear what their praise singers want them to hear.

Leaders either through their body language or free speech communicate in the sense that people around them know what they are trying to do. They are purpose-driven, yes, mission-driven. Can we say this of the nation’s leaders that they are purpose- driven? No, they are not because Nigerian leaders could not be purpose-driven and Nigeria is held hostage by petrol importers. Do Nigerian leaders know how to establish a mission? Do they know how to say no to wrong doings by those they appointed?

A critical question for Nigerian leaders is: When will they stop pouring resources into things that will only achieve their purpose? The most dangerous traps for a leader are those near-successes where everybody says that if you just give it another big push, it will go over the top. Since 1986, Nigeria has been pursuing economic diversification, resources upon resources have been poured into the economy without any meaningful success. Why do policymakers go round in circles in Nigeria on the issue of the economy?

It is sad that everyday, some form of falsehood is being peddled by one political party or the other; it is either to boast of achievements that do not exist in reality or to accuse the other party’s members of wrongdoing. Apparently, no party does wrong because the other party has to dig up its dirt. True self- introspection does not exist in the Nigerian political arena.

There are so many wrong happenings going on in Nigeria presently. Have you asked yourself why those in positions to best speak out against these negative developments remain in a perennial state of muteness?   They consider their self interest first.

Why are most people in prominent positions politically and/or corporately, have not publicly expressed their opinion on which candidate is best suited at this time to move Nigeria forward? They are just playing both sides, so that they do not suffer adverse direct or indirect consequences if the ‘other’ candidate wins. Most of them are waiting to show their allegiance to the ‘winner’ regardless of whom that is.  Madness is on free exhibition as all sense of decorum is thrown out of the door for riches by supposedly educated people. People who want to lead the country are running amok.

Who will fix the nation’s economy?