State of Emergency; Matters Arising.

State of Emergency; Matters Arising.

Between Inordinate Ambition and Good Governance

Adjective

1. not within proper or reasonable limits; immoderate; excessive: He drank an inordinate amount of wine.

2. unrestrained in conduct, feelings, etc.: an inordinate admirer of beauty.

3. disorderly; uncontrolled.

4. not regulated; irregular: inordinate hours. Greed and inordinate ambition lead to great human tragedy

“He that seeks to be great by all means seeks the path of self-destruction”

It is no longer surprising that inordinate ambition, narrow-mindedness and greed have been the causes of insecurity, mindless corruption, poor or bad governance, all culminating in poverty, mediocrity, underdevelopment and conflicts in many African countries.

Logically speaking, human beings carry within them the desire to be great in life. Everybody would like to pursue happiness and fulfilment in life.  Both natural and divine laws, however, set the limit to which a person may seek to actualize his ambition. While it is no crime to seek to be great, it becomes a criminal act and a sin against God and Man when we seek greatness by destroying others or doing things that will jeopardize the opportunities and liberty that others have. This latter category is what abounds in Nigeria, and indeed, in most African countries.

There is danger in blindly pursuing power, position and prominence at the detriment of our spiritual well-being and at the expense of other people’s lives. But do our rulers in Nigeria and Africa care?

Inordinate ambition captures the lust for power and status as is evidenced in the type of democratic and political system that we run in Nigeria. It includes ruthless competition and self-advancement. While such ambitions often results in material wealth, the person with the sin of inordinate ambition may regard money as secondary or even irrelevant. Money is useful only as it buys more opportunities.

Unfortunately, and inevitably, in all cases of inordinate ambition, national interests and selfless service to the people are often sacrificed and completely relegated to the background. Again, we see these every day in our daily lives in this country. The recent “Oga at the Top” tragi-comedy is a very good example of mediocrity brought on as a result of inordinate ambition.

As the race for political offices in 2015 begins to be perceived as an elephant meat that every Tom, Dick, or Harry, including those that are unfit for purpose – fraudsters, murderers, thieves, convicts, etc. - want to slice off a piece for their personal consumption, all kinds of people are coming out to vie for the higher elective offices - Presidency, Governorship, Legislative and even Local Government Chair-persons - in 2015.

The kinds of people who appear to be crawling out of the woodwork in recent times confirm our long-held suspicion that these previously revered positions are still not being accorded the dignity they deserve.  The latest names for Presidency being bandied about include the current Speaker of the House of Representative, Ibrahim Tambuwal.  The same Tambuwal was the gentleman implicated in the former Speaker Dimeji Bankole’s N10bn quarterly running cost freebie scam. Of course, he survived the scandal and was made the Speaker. Have we put that behind us now? We now know where they intend part of the loot to be used, don’t we? It is easy to sweep billions of Naira under the carpet in our country. We can only hope that political rivals opposed to his presidential ambition will bring that up at the appropriate time.

The problem has always been with our people, as I have always posited in many previous writings. If we do not exercise sound judgement at this most crucial moment of our political destiny, and we end up (again and again) with people like the Speaker or Rivers State Governor or even the Senate President as president, the country will be even moving further from the hope we are nursing that things might get better in 2015.

Most, if not all, of these men are corrupt and inept. They are corrupt politicians and rulers (I refuse to call them leaders) who pretend to be concerned about the future of the country but are men who will further erode the fine traditions of multi-party democracy, further entrench corruption, negate socio-political development, entrench backwardness and promote disrespect for fundamental human rights that we so desperately crave. One only needs to examine the records of these men when they rigged themselves into governance to conclude that they lack the moral fibre and fitness to be in their current political offices and positions, to even condemn others, let alone contest for the Presidency.

A former member of the House of Representatives Hon. Mohammed Kumalia says inordinate ambition and ego are the causes of Nigeria's political crises. Kumalia stated this when he spoke on the topic 'Peace and Conflict Resolution' in Abuja Monday at a peace seminar organised by the Rotary Club of Wuse Central and the Rotary Club of Abuja City (provisional) on 4^th February 2013.

According to him, "Nigeria's polity is ravaged by politicians who want to dominate the political space for life. Political leaders fail to distinguish between their offices and their personal egos, and have side-lined the led."

Even, President Jonathan who spoke at the end of the convention of the PDP in March 2013 in Abuja told the members “to resist the temptation of allowing inordinate ambition and what appears to be a growing obsession with the politics of succession in 2015 to cause disaffection within the ranks of the party”.

Look around us. Already, serving ministers (who did not contest for elections or failed at elections and were subsequently recompensed and appointed ministers) and federal legislators having stolen enough money are now trying to force themselves into contention to be governors in their home states. Some serving governors succeeded through this route. Some senior civil servants, nearing retirement are also considering this route.

At the states level, similar scenarios exist. Deputy Governors, of course, and erroneously, expect that it is a natural career or political progression for them to become the next governor of the state. Inordinate ambition, again. Commissioners have abandoned their service and are scheming and campaigning to be governors. They are also joined by state legislators (members of the House of Assemblies) and local government chair-persons and even some ambitious councillors.

Some state legislators also want to take further advancement to becoming federal legislators.

Again, because I don’t want people to get me wrong, I am not against people being ambitious in life. In fact it is a natural trait for humankind. In fact a man or woman that has no ambition in life in nothing. And this is why I repeat what I wrote earlier that human beings carry within them the desire to be great in life. Everybody would like to pursue happiness and fulfilment in life.  Both natural and divine laws, however, set the limit to which a person may seek to actualize his ambition. While it is no crime to seek to be great, it becomes a criminal act when we seek greatness by destroying others or doing things that will jeopardize the opportunities and liberty that others have. This is inordinate ambition. We all have our own ambitions, but a wise person will know his/her limitations in whatever they embark upon, and approach such ambitions and future with some caution and humility and then try to adapt or overcome those weaknesses.

Inordinate ambition also applies when a person is striving for position or power that is actually beyond their capabilities, intelligence or abilities. Some recognise their own lack of these virtues, but still want to obfuscate and cheat their way around; others don’t and think they do. Examples abound in our political, and actually in our way of life. An instance of this is the dishonesty of our politicians when it comes to their educational attainment or achievement. Certainly, they are, or such people feel inferior because they have low levels of education, even though they have the minimum requirement as stipulated by legislation, sometimes, none at all, so they resort to forgery. How do you expect a forger to perform in governance? How do you expect a forger to provide the right services to the people? A forger of educational certificate is definitely in the political system to steal and exploit the system.

These ilk of politicians have inordinate ambition not commensurate with their natural or acquired abilities, honesty and sincerity of purpose, capabilities and intelligence. That is why we find that many of our legislators, federal or states can spend an entire four years in the hallowed chambers and never contribute a word and idea to any issues on the floor of the house. Go and look at the records.

The surge in the aspiration of Nigerians to contest political office is breeding mayhem in the country. In the First Republic, the desire for people to contest elective positions was not so strong. For example, local government councillors only received sitting and transport allowance but in this unrestrained 1999-political dispensation and era, the huge salary, un-merited allowances and other huge sums of money being paid to political aides, constituency offices, domestic, utility allowances, which legislators converted to their pockets as part of their take-home pay every month, has made elective legislative positions a do-or-die affair.

Furthermore, in the First and Second Republics, there was no constituency project allowances awarded to legislators or their appointees, but now that constituency projects and the accompanying allowance have been instituted into the Constitution; this has led many Nigerians to start seeking political office. For governorship, the allure of the multibillion naira “security vote”, which they do not have to account for, is attracting all kinds of parasites and thieves to the state houses.

We have seen, since our foray into democracy, or even maybe even as far back as a sovereign nation, that out of selfishness or desperation to occupy a position, our rulers, past and present have decided the only way they understand how to rule their people is to be corrupt and inept. But they forget nemesis will always catch up on them no matter how long.

Above all, Nigeria and all its resources and wealth belong to all one hundred and fifty million or so of us and any attempt by some tiny cabal out of inordinate ambition, greed, selfishness and insincerity to satisfy their desire at the expense of Nigeria and the Nigerian people will definitely attract God’s punishment, as well as punishment from Man.

It is indeed very sad, and actually very alarming that men and women with such inordinate ambition are the ones ruling us today and are preparing to come forward to worm, steal, murder and fake their way to power again in 2015. Already some governors who will not be eligible for another term, having served two terms, come 2015 are planning to continue their mediocrity and thievery in the Senate, where many of their predecessors, most of them still having corruption cases to answer (and which the government and/or the EFCC have seemingly conveniently forgotten) are still paradoxically sitting and sleeping their way through house sessions and making laws for us.

It is no wonder we are in big trouble with people like these; people of inordinate ambition and of low intelligence and mediocrity, at the helm of affairs of a country as complex, full of potentials and wealthy as ours. They just can’t handle it. They do not have the intelligence, the vision, the focus, the sensibilities, the conscience, the commitment, the selflessness, the wherewithal, the capabilities, the moral ground and character to lead people. It is impossible for a stupid goat to lead a pack of dogs. They are frittering away our common wealth and opportunities.

Please, compatriots, let’s make it impossible for these opportunists, parasites and people of inordinate ambition in 2015!

Institute for Tourism Professionals charges stakeholders on capacity development

Institute for Tourism Professionals charges stakeholders on capacity development

Affinity Libra Ltd is working in partnership and cooperation with the Institute for Tourism Professionals. I am a Fellow of the Institute.

The Apotheos-ification of Nigerian Leaders and Political Elites

Apotheosis (from Greek, apotheoun "to deify"; in Latin deificatio "making divine"; also called divinization and deification) is the glorification of a subject to divine level. The term has meanings in theology, where it refers to a belief, and in art, where it refers to a genre (Wikipaedia).

In theology, the term apotheosis refers to the idea that an individual has been raised to godlike stature. In art, the term refers to the treatment of any subject (a figure, group, locale, motif, convention or melody) in a particularly grand or exalted manner.

A cult of personality arises when an individual uses mass media, propaganda, or other methods, to create an idealized, heroic, and, at times god-like public image, often through unquestioning flattery and praise. A cult of personality is similar to hero worship, except that it is established by mass media and propaganda.

Throughout history, monarchs and heads of state were almost always held in enormous reverence. Through the principle of the divine right of kings, for example, rulers were said to hold office by the will of God. Imperial China, ancient Egypt, Japan, Britain, the royals, the Inca, the Aztecs, Tibet, Thailand, and the Roman Empire are especially noted for redefining monarchs as god-kings. In pre-colonial Africa and Nigeria, the same applies with most of the monarchs, e.g. in Yoruba land, the Alaafin of Oyo and the Ooni of Ife used to be deified until somehow, they lost their reverence.

The spread of democratic and secular ideas in Europe and North America in the 18th and 19th centuries made it increasingly difficult for monarchs to preserve this aura. However, the subsequent development of photography, sound recording, film, and mass production, as well as public education and techniques used in commercial advertising, enabled political leaders to project a positive image like never before. It was from these circumstances in the 20th century that the best-known personality cults arose. Often these cults are a form of political religion (Wikipaedia)

Service is the best reason for being a leader. There are many examples of true service; Jesus Christ is one of them. A true leader asks people to follow his/her example. This is what has made democracy work and sustainable in Western democracies and societies – leaders serve and ask their people to follow, and the people follow.

I really do not have a problem with leaders who are performing or are seen to be performing their duties and responsibilities, if ONLY selflessly. (This is very rare anyway) Once in a while we see such leaders, but usually and mostly in the horizon.

My problem is Praise-singing and Hero-worshipping of our leaders (ironically, these people are not even anywhere near being heroes, not to talk of worthy of praise), and that's the reason we are having problems with them and they take advantage of us. I never indulge in such trivial pursuits. I am not a sycophant. Most of the time, I don't see what these leaders are doing that is unexpected or extraordinary. After all, look around you; the country is still as backward as ever, despite very strong infrastructural and civil legacies left by the colonialists, so what are they really doing?

Recently one Governor described his own people (we, Nigerians) as TIMID. It was then I saw the irony and the insult, albeit true. It is because we are timid, or they feel we are timid, that the corrupt, evil and clueless political elite take undue advantage of us, stealing, looting, raping, killing and generally mismanaging our resources, our common wealth. They bank and rely on the fact that they are lording it over a very TIMID people. That is what they have been relying on and banking on for the past 5 decades, with a toxic combination of intimidation, divide and rule, outright dishonesty, deceit and mediocrity.

When would we, as a people, realise that in a democracy, those elected into political positions as well as civil servants, are expected and must do what we elected or appointed them to do and are paid to do and that they are NOT doing us any favour whatsoever by building roads, bridges, hospitals, schools or providing employment? This is their damned job!  And after all, the money they are using to execute all these projects are not theirs but ours. Or have you ever heard of a Nigerian politician using his/her own money to build roads or even to contest elections? It is our money they waste to sponsor the weddings of their children, and in a recent instance, the wedding in Dubai of a famous singer.

When you hear or read of our devious and callous political leaders, saying they are empowering people by distributing bicycles, generators, bags of rice, umbrellas, sewing machines and 10 thousand Naira to the people of their constituencies, accompanied by loud media coverage, and projecting to the people as if they are spending their own personal wealth (the hypocrisy of it!), then you know we are indeed in trouble. It is not their money; and they can do much better than this, can’t they?; the money is the Constituency Project allowances they are supposed to use in the first place but which most of them convert to their own use.

THIS IS WHAT THEY ARE BEING PAID TO DO! We can only recognise and commend them for doing their job if they are actually doing it selflessly, but NOT praise them to high heavens as if they are the Messiah, demi-gods or Super-humans.

Please don’t get me wrong. I am only against apotheosis, praise-singing and hero-worshipping. I will recognise, commend, celebrate, reward honour and sing to high heavens any good work that is being done selflessly, sincerely, timely, considerately, compassionately, holistically and appropriately by any leader in my country.

We are getting a very raw deal from these people we now regard as demi-gods and untouchables by law. But we are more powerful than them. We can vote them out. We should vote them out. We must not allow then to sniff or get anywhere near the seats of power. We must not allow them to rig elections or manipulate votes and voting equipment. We must not allow them to intimidate us.

Nigerians and Africans should stop treating politicians as gods; treat them as a normal people on the street. As a matter of fact, our politicians should be treated with some measure of disdain and perhaps, held in contempt, because politics is not a career, it is a symbiotic way of life, in any society – they depend on the society to thrive and the society expects something in return for sucking us for their livelihood. We pay their salaries and they are supposed to look after and deliver our expectations. So don't treat them like gods.

Some of us treat our Nigerian Legis-looters, Execu-thieves, Poli-trickcians, Sin-ators, like God’s gift to the world; these are the cronies, boot-lickers, political jobbers, impostors, mediocre whose only way of survival is cuddling up to anybody in power. This ilk of people do not have any capacity or intelligence to making a living, so they infect and infest the politician, who is him/herself ready to be infected and infested. It is mutually convenient and beneficial to both parties.

On a recent lecture I delivered in Lagos on a similar topic, the reactions that arose are in bold, in response to my position:

·         Nigerians should treat their political leaders as a normal people on the street:  Impossible! Every time there's a politicians coming to certain place, there is always a big community event to welcomed or celebrate them. See the convoys and the jamboree of hangers-on that follow them.

·         We pay their salaries and they are supposed to look after and deliver our expectations: They will only look after their lackeys, their flatterers and those who aid them in their misrule and lootings.

·         They control the media, what do you expect?

·         So don't treat them like gods – It is a cultural thing, Africans hold people with age, wealth, authority and power in awe so much, they regard those who hold such as almost gods, and when regarded as such, these irresponsible parasites will do anything and everything possible to stay in power, and that includes killing.

I agree 100% with this last bit. It is a cultural malaise. This is why a lot is amiss with our combination of leadership, democracy and system of governance, and should be changed. A very good instance is the appointment of people into positions such as Ministers, Commissioners, Special Advisers and Assistants, Board Members, etc. These sets of people fail miserably in the performance of what are expected of them as public servants, not only because they are mostly pedestrian and quacks anyway, but because they do not owe their allegiance, appointments or responsibilities to the service of the people, but to their Almighty Leaders (President, Governors, etc) who appointed them.

The result is that when a Cabinet re-shuffle is imminent; these lackeys start panicking and start running around like headless chicken, scared and lobbying to stay in their jobs. When they do not perform, they will not resign. That is the affairs of state in Nigeria; no moral will to admit mistakes, non-performance and inefficiency, hence the massive level of corruption that has brought the country almost on its knees while saner and more sincere minds look on helplessly whilst middling and men and women of low intelligence take over running – ruining- the lives of 150 million people.

We should learn from the Japanese:

The Best Leader

The best leaders, the people do not notice.

The next best, the people honour and praise.

The next, the people fear;

And the next, the people hate.

If you have no faith,

People will have no faith in you,

And you must resort to oaths (lies).

When the best leader’s work is done

The people say: “We did it ourselves!

It's actually from the Chinese poet Lao Tzu, but this is what Japanese people think of Politicians.

I can't stand sycophancy and obsequiousness. I can’t stand timidity and reticence either.