"The price of greatness is responsibility"- Winston Churchill
There is no doubt to the fact that the secret to a flourishing, prosperous and great nation lies on the shoulders of responsible leaders. Every great nation had leaders who sees the position of leadership as a medium of heartfelt service to humanity, leading to the nation's development. For the pursuance of another leader, there must have been a former that failed. This essay seeks to focus on Nigerian's hope in the pursuit and search for responsible leadership.
In Nigeria, the issue of leadership and good governance have been a great concern since her independence in 1960. Despite her population and natural resources, corruption and mismanagement of wealth have hampered the pursuit of national development in the country. Most Nigerian leaders are accused of lacking the requisite vision, passion and character for political leadership. The consequence is that despite Nigeria's rich resource endowment, she had consistently ranked low on various international assessments on human development and good governance. Nigeria can't afford to take a risky decision regarding the next leader that would attain leadership position in every sphere of the nation. It is glaring now that both old and young at every corner are debating on who is fit and who is not fit as the next president. It is important to note that this can't be achieved by mere talks and debate. Do we have any parameters put in place to gauge who is fit? On what tenets can we say truly one is capable while the other is not? If these can be clarified then there's hope for responsible leadership leading to the nation's development.
In China, Mao Tse-Tung set the state that transformed China from a peasant economy to a major economy giant in the world. As a visionary leader, his primary goals were to catch up and surpass the rest of the world in economy, sports, science, technology and defence. Today, China is the fastest growing economy in the world with an average annual growth rate of about 9% in the last two decades. This account demonstrates that with visionary leadership and good governance, a nation could experience remarkable improvement and success in its overall development.
The basic requirement of a responsible leader is the vision he has. Myles munroe once said: "A leader's vision is more real and important to him than the experience of the present". A visionary leader can see what is down the road and what it is going to take to get there. Unfortunately, the economy which happens to be the life of every nation is in squabbles with the nation's debt which is about £95.8 billion as at 2021, how do we clear the debt? When economic problem is solved, every other sector would flourish. Dear Nigerians, let us scrutinize the visions of our incoming leaders.
Furthermore, trust is another tenet upon which responsible leadership is built. The fuel of leadership is trust. Effective leadership is really built on the foundation of an honourable life that produces confidence in one's character. A responsible leader must be able to earn the trust of its citizens (young and old). One way, this is known through thorough check of past records and achievements. Does he have a track record? When this has been carried out it is a mirror that would show if he can perform better in the next. Trust is a product of time and integrity.
In conclusion, when we've gauged the incoming leaders using these parameters, then we as the citizens have to vote. Let's get our PVC (permanent voter's card) and vote for that man who has a vision for this country. This is our own price of responsibility to be paid. I tell you NIGERIA there is great hope to have a responsible leader and a great nation."The price of greatness is responsibility"-Winston Churchill.
Bakare, Peace Oluwatosin from UI-lagos.
First Runner up of NASELS Southwest essay competition
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