AFRICA AND LEADERSHIP
ISSUE
Africa, in the global context is
almost synonymous with evil, bad omen and other societal vices – be it
diseases, poverty, wars, corruption, natural and man made disasters etc. The
list is unending. Sometimes one wonders if what happens to Africa and in Africa is an act of fate or calculated human
manipulations. On a critical look, I frankly toe the line of human
manipulations because Divine providence has been gracious to Africa. The
continent is one of the most blessed and endowed in the world; in terms of
material and human resources. Think of gold, silver, diamonds (and other solid
minerals), timber, cotton, cocoa, coffee (and other agro cash crops), oil and
gas, population etc; Africa is not lagging
behind. According to Atlas of Africa and G8 research group report, Africa
accounts for 8% of world’s ore production, 75% of world’s reserves of diamond
and platinum, 80% of phosphate and chromium, 65% of manganese and 40% of
world’s gold. It has 10% of world’s oil reserves and 25% of world’s arable
land; yet its global agricultural output is just 10% and about 65% of its
population lives below the poverty line.
Leadership whether viewed in terms of
position, qualities or control of power is one thing needful but yet lacking in
Africa . Leadership means many things to many
people and also many things in different context. True Leadership is indeed
contextual and that is why there is no one absolute and inclusive definition
that encapsulate all about Leadership. However for a better understanding of
this write up; I found John Haggai’s take on leadership more interesting. It
describes “Leadership as the discipline of deliberately exerting special
influence within a group to move it towards goals of beneficial permanence that
fulfill the group’s real needs”. In other words, effective leadership is all
about influencing the lives of people through social development, economic
improvement and moral transformation. Unfortunately, this is yet to be seen in
Africa. Simply put, a nation or continent without leadership is like a
rudderless ship. It flounders and drifts. ‘Floundering and drifting’ is indeed
what is happening in Africa.
The question is: where the place of youth is.
Where is the place of competence and time relevance in Cameroon? These
“Grand-Pa” law makers, how relevant are they in this digital dispensation. What
ingenuity can they bring to bear on law making that will address the critical
needs of the people and chart a purposeful course for the Country; which they
could not do during their active days in public service? A deeper look into the
public service records/profiles of many of these “Grand-parents” indicates they
have been part of the over 30 years of endemic corruption and visionless
leadership in Cameroon. Some political pundits – mainly sympathizers of the
ruling party opined that Cameroon would reap off the wealth of experience of
this elderly lawmakers; arguing that many of them are accomplished experts and
professionals in their various fields. Funny enough, in one of their
legislative sessions monitored through Cameroon Radio and Television (CRTV),
about 20% of these elderly men dozed off at different intervals in the course
of their deliberations. It therefore becomes a great concern for all, on the
impact a situation like this could have on legislative processes and its final
outcomes. In as much as experience of
the elderly is important in Leadership, some political experts looks at the
convergence of this elderly persons in the upper house of legislature as a
political chess game with a hidden agenda, orchestrated by the power that be –
probably to perpetrate a political dynasty, a tribal clinch to power and or
political “godfatherism”. This is obviously not new in Africa afterall – the
case of Congo DRC, Togo and lately Gabon are glaring examples. Other nations of
the continent do have similar or different issues – all pointers to leadership.
Leadership is not a job for apprentices and
journeymen. In as much as I completely acknowledge the right of somebody to
aspire to lead his country or nation, but I must insist here also that nobody
has a right to reduce the serious business of Leadership to an object of
diabolical joke. “The real bane of our
problems is leadership. Some leaders tend to come to office by chance. In local
parlance, we say they came to office by heart”, says former President John
Kufuor of Ghana. Personality is therefore central to Leadership. The
personality – the social and moral components of a person who is to lead
matters a great deal. Not his social, cultural and or political affiliations.
When a person leads he sets the pace, the moral and socio-cultural tone of the
nation. All pontifications about probity in public office fall flat and become
a waste of time if a leader is himself corrupt. No wise person or citizen of a
nation will listen to any leader who preaches frugality for instance while
ostentation and conspicuous consumption are the hallmarks of his leadership style.
If he preaches human rights, he must submit himself to the rigors of the rule
of law. If he has faith in the unity, progress and prosperity of his nation; he
must rise above the pettiness of ethnicism and parochialism in issues of
resource control and equitable distribution.
People should be chosen to rule base on records. A
record that qualifies one to be so chosen should be earned. Not through obscene
display of wealth or thinly veiled pursuit of personal or group aggrandizement;
but through humble service to one’s community. Humility is the main focus here.
The gravity of responsibility of office brings with it humility; a norm which
should not be taken for timidity or a debased opinion of oneself. Humility has
always been an essential ingredient of Leadership. It takes humility to accept
to selflessly serve a people or course. Humility in the context of Leadership
refers to the modesty and grace to recognize the limitations of both oneself as
a person, as an individual and power itself. There should be a clear separation
of the two. It should not be unequally or forcefully fused together otherwise
the individual leader becomes intoxicated with power. The tendency therefore is
an overbearing attitude that breeds corruption and all sorts of impunities
and recklessness to hang on to power. This has been what I call the “frozen
point” of Leadership in Africa; which I must state here, has gingered
protracted conflicts, wars and power tussle in the continent.
Africa has no business being the
“weeping child” in the global arena. She has no business being the magnetic
point for all sort of world aid (both well and or ill intentioned). She has no
business being beggarly, exploited and deprived if and only if she had gotten
the whole issue of leadership right. Former President Kufuor again said Africa
should not suffer as she is doing now when she sits on a trough of wealth, from
natural to human resources.”Africa is today being courted by China, America and
Europe. Our concern should be about a groomed leadership, sharpened acumen to
stand eye to eye with others. Once we realize this, the Africa Union call for
partnership will be achieved. Without it however, we would be thrown back to
neocolonialism which we do not want.”
Challenges and obstacles are
indeed an integral part of human existence which also cuts across continents
and nations. Professor Adei Stephen in his book Leadership and Nation building
states that “Some Africa scholars postulate that other regions of the world
have been successful because they did not suffer from the devastating impact of
slavery, colonialism and neo-colonialism like Africa did. We must not in any
way downplay the adverse impact of these phenomena in frustrating the
development of indigenous industries, in depleting Africa of critical manpower,
in distorting the natural evolution and transformation of African economies and
damaging our people psychologically to the extent that even till date we look
to the metropolises – London, Paris or Lisbon – as havens for saving and investment
and places to buy consumer goods”. This
obvious setbacks notwithstanding, it is however important to state here that Nations
that rise from ordinariness, Nations that surmount their obstacles, Nations
that accept the challenges of their problems and turn them into sources of
strength and prosperity has always been Nations with great leadership.
Unfortunately what we have seen from our history as Africans is the havoc a
spineless, dubious, corrupt and purposeless leadership has wrecked on our
Continent / Nations.
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