Leadership is a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of OTHERS towards the achievement of a goal, and has absolutely nothing to do with seniority or one’s position in a hierarchy. Titles are of little or no importance at all.
Adumbrating on the above, as topical as it is, Bill Gates, who needs no introduction in global affairs once said: “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders must be those who empower others” while Warren Bennis put his thus: “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision to reality.”
From the aforesaid, the only cogent deductible conclusion will be that leadership is not selfish, not centred on ego and the nonsensical “it is my turn” rancidity but on the propensity to drive a collective vision and not insulting the sensibilities of others.
Character, a set of behaviours used to help a PEOPLE align their collective direction to execute strategic plans and continually RENEW and organization, comes into play. Note, the words, OTHERS, PEOPLE and RENEW are deliberately foregrounded, for purposes of emphasis.
Furthermore, the particular combination of qualities in a person that makes them different from others, culminating in the way someone thinks, feels or behaves can equally be said to form part of what is called character.
In view of all of the above, a person’s political character may be defined as his HABITUAL responses to political situations, rooted at the personality level. Those responses of course include a wide range of attitudes and traits, such as apathy or interest, submission or assertiveness towards authority, SUSPICION or TRUST of other groups and so on.
Rep. Benjamin Kalu comes into focus here and deductions must be made on the platter of objectivity because national issues are of germane importance, in that it affects the collective destiny of a nation.
Persons having similar responses may be grouped as a ‘type’, which is sometimes brought to bare on the basis of a cluster of responses which are seen to go together, and that is why someone can be politically described as a “reliable, good and a stable man”, while another is said to be a “chameleon” or outright “irresponsible”.
The emerging 10th Assembly, with particular emphasis on the Lower Chamber, requires an individual whose has unquestionable character and verifiable qualifications, who can be vouched for across Nigeria’s geo-political divides, not given to flippancy and double-speak, with a pedegree of reliability, acceptability, strong conviction and the “others before I” mindset, as concerns mounting the saddle of leadership.
That PERSON is in the PERSON of Representative Benjamin Kalu.
It will be apt to posit that Representative Kalu has remained profoundly genuine, firm and straight forward and his antecedents are untainted and verifiable: nothing to hide with no skeletons in his closet.
Also, Benjamin Kalu is not given to infantile spasms culminating in “zone the Speakership to me, with my name in it” but putting himself forward, having been a front liner in positively positioning the image of Nigeria, to be an attractive brand in the league of Democracies across the Continent of Africa and the World at large, counting on the support of his colleagues to drive the vision to an accomplished reality.
Finally, every kind of politics implies some psychological premises, not just puerile assumptions and Psychology being the study of the mind to proffer sound reasoning in this circumstance, Representative Benjamin Kalu, from all available indices is the man for the Speakership position of the 10th Federal Legislature.
May it please Nigeria.
HENRY MADUBUIKE
Convener
Center for Excellence and Performance in Governance
