Even before the official declaration of the amalgamation of Nigeria, there had been the issue of leadership, and even sixty years after independence, Nigeria continues to nurse an old injury that seems never to heal. In the words of Chinua Achebe, the trouble with Nigeria is the problem of leadership. Since Nigeria’s independence, it has practised parliamentary, presidential, and military systems of government. Sixty and two years later, none of it seems to have been the panacea to this quagmire. Nigerians are citizens of Nigeria by whatever means statutory, and it is only normal for citizens to have good prospects for their countries, and such prospects begin and end with who leads and how they lead.
Nigerians’ prospects in the quest for responsible leadership connote the dreams and aspirations of Nigerians for an all-inclusive leadership that understands its responsibilities and would execute them effectively and efficiently.
It is important to examine the salient trajectory of Nigeria’s history, one which was quickly marred by political riots and protests, successive military coups and counter-coups, and a civil war, which was in fact, and by common sense, too early – six years after independence! Everything revolves around the quest for leadership; the quest for people who put the nation’s interests before theirs. Sixty-two years later, it seems like we are still where Great Britain left us, or worse.
The quest for responsible leadership led to the crises that vitiated the first republic; crises that were unnecessary if a better approach had been utilised. The year 1966 came with two coups, in January and July, which crippled the leadership of Nigeria; and in the following year, the thirty darkest months in the history of Nigeria began—the Nigeria-Biafra War—which claimed the lives of about 3 million children. The war could have been prevented if Nigeria had had a responsible leadership that understood the gory of war. Nigeria, a fast-developing country, slid into shambles.
Nigeria, in its fourth republic, is still challenged by the issues it has had since its formative years. As a system which practises democracy by vesting the power to elect the people, Nigerians’ quest for responsible leadership could be less said and more demonstrated. One of the features of democracy is the presence of multi-party competition, but Nigeria, this African giant, has, for many years, receded to a system that is more or less a two-party system. However, Nigerians’ zeal is increasing rapidly, and there are more social, political, religious, and cultural engagements promoting the need for active participation in politics. Various pressure groups are calling on Nigerians to exercise their civic right – voting – and vote for the right person to fix Nigeria. The call on Nigerians to vote for a kind of leadership that would fix Nigeria connotes a pragmatic acknowledgement that Nigeria is already disintegrated and that there is a need for it to be fixed.
This also corroborates the words of Jim Hightower, an American activist, that "Democracy is not something that happens... just at election time, and it’s not something that happens just with one event. It’s an ongoing building process. But it also ought to be a part of our culture, a part of our lives". Hightower has summarised the solution to Nigeria’s problems – the need for citizens to actively participate in the processes that determine how leaders are selected. In the specific case of Nigeria, it begins with two subtle but important steps. The first step is having the conviction to be part of a change. Appadorai (2004) corroborates this, asserting that "democracy demands from the common man a certain level of ability and character: rational conduct and active participation in the government" (p. 4). The second step is acting, which is essentially registering to get the permanent voter’s card—the statutory licence to vote and thereby make a change.
In conclusion, Nigerians’ prospects for responsible leadership are deeply rooted in the desire to see the country transform; the desire to see transparency and accountability in government; and the desire to see a system where justice is served. It is the desire to see a system that works with a government that knows what it does, how it does it, and when it does it.
Abiodun Peter from FUOYE.
Winner of NASELS southwest essay competition.
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