Immediate past Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Ndudi Elumelu has tasked African nations to take urgent steps develop strong leadership molding mechanisms to ensure required competences and skills that deliver effective service-oriented leadership in both public and private governance.
Elumelu also urged African nations to overhaul their education system and curriculum to ensure more practical, functional and solution-targeted so as to provide the much needed skilled and efficient manpower, managerial and leadership needs in all sectors.
The former Minority Leader who spoke while delivering a keynote address at the 2nd Edition of the International Congress of Assertive Leadership (CILA), in Luanda, Angola, last Tuesday stressed that these are fundamental towards the much-desired solution to the economic, social and political challenges currently confronting most African nations.
Elumelu lamented that though African nations are blessed with abundant natural resources, highly resilient and hardworking citizens; yet they are plagued by extreme poverty, massive youth unemployment, weakened governance institutions, political instability, restiveness, violence, intense sense of hopelessness and misery due largely to incompetent and ill-equipped leadership
He said, “Many African nations are still suffering from the hangover of the negatives of colonialism. Most African countries have not been able evolve the right type of political leadership that have the components of patriotism, service and accountability, with home-grown disposition, capacity and competence to effectively harness and utilize the vast natural and human resources for the wellbeing of the citizens.
“The result is a deplorable situation of incompetent, insensitive and unaccountable political leadership that superintends over economic, political and technological overdependency on Western interests; impaired public service and heavily depressed private sector with consequential underdevelopment, industrial backwardness, dearth of the manufacturing and construction sectors, high costs of living, capital flight, brain drain, weak currencies, abysmally low purchasing power and a frustrated and angry citizenry desperate for survival.
“Africa stands at a pivotal moment in its history. Our continent is brimming with potential, with a young population eager to innovate and lead. Yet, to fully realize this potential, we need leaders who are visionary, patriotic, with the right skills to harness Africa’s strengths, address its challenges, and chart a course toward sustainable growth and development.
“To achieve the desired growth and development, we must inculcate the grains of Assertive Leadership in both public and private sector governance. Assertive Leadership means addressing the issues that matter most to our people; economic empowerment, education, healthcare, and governance. It means creating opportunities where there are obstacles, and building bridges where there are divides. It means leading with a sense of responsibility, knowing that the decisions we make today will shape the future of our nations”.
Elumelu therefore called on African nations to immediately address our education and political leadership recruitment process for solution adding that public and corporate organizations must design assertive leadership programs to help boost the reservoir of manpower with assertive leadership skills.
“First, we must address the base. That base is Education. Our education system and curriculum must be practically overhauled to reflect or prevailing realities in such a way to provide indigenous but international standard and best practice solutions in skilled and efficient manpower, managerial and leadership needs in all sectors.
“Our education system must be made to be more practical, functional, and solution-targeted. Our institutions of learning must inculcate Assertive Leadership, mentoring courses and programs of goal setting, dedication to duty, firmness, patriotism, honesty, accountability, respect, openness, adherence to set rules and responsibility” he said.
Elumelu charged political parties in the continent to evolve leadership molding system and nomination processes that produce candidates with required leadership personality, competence and skills.
“On the political plane, just as no Board of a corporation recommends employees based on sentiments but competence, skill and experience, political parties must evolve nomination processes that produce candidates with required leadership personality, competence and skills.
“Political parties must develop leadership moulding mechanisms by evolving and pursuing service-oriented manifestoes, programmes, and code of conduct for elected and appointed political office holders. Parties should also maintain strict adherence to the demands of internal democracy to guarantee credible nomination processes for the emergence of dependable candidates for elections”
He also called for the strengthening of governance institutions, especially the electoral umpires, the judiciary, the mass media and security agencies to ensure credible elections and accountability in the system.
“The imperative of accountability must be strengthened in the system. African nations must ensure the credibility and freedom of the legislature to guarantee credible legislations and the much-needed constitutionally empowered check on the Executive under the Principle of Separation of Powers
“In addition, public enlightenment is pivotal in ensuring Assertive Leadership in public governance. Not only that, it helps mobilize the citizens towards informed choices on the electoral worthiness of candidates as well as equip society with practical ways of influencing decision-making processes and holding leaders in public and private sectors accountable” he said.
