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Barrister Yakubu Dogara
By Akanji Alowolodo, Bauchi
A former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Barrister Yakubu Dogara has lamented that since independence, there has not been conscious efforts to train Nigerian leaders beyond their ethical and religious appeals to imbibe the concept of nation building.
He further lamented that, “a few leaders blessed with this Nationalistic ideal of Nation building seemed not to understand the concept of mentorship which should have inculcated these values on the younger generation” .
“Consequently, what we have today is winner takes all and win at all cost. Elected officials and government workers feel they have a right to a share of government revenues, and they use them to benefit supporters, co-religionists and members of their ethnic groups”.
Yakubu Dogara spoke when he delivered a keynote address at the National Mentoring and coaching conference on the topic Governance and Political Mentorship: Imperative for National Development’ held ON Thursday, 17th November, 2022 at Rock View Hotel (CLASSIC), Maitama , Abuja.
According to him, “Our youths have been recruited as political thugs and have assumed positions without those ideals. To get out of this and archive good governance, we need a lot of political mentorship which some of us have struggled over the years to propagate”.
He said that “no mentorship takes place when we don’t push people to become who they really are but choose to operate in an uninspiring atmosphere full of threats, intimidation and blackmail. That is why it’s difficult if not impossible to raise true leaders in Nigeria whose impact will last for generations”.
Yakubu Dogara said that, “The problem is further exacerbated when an individual is deep. His colleagues will interpret that as arrogance while the Boss concludes that he is too independent and dangerous, a sin that may lead to his being canceled” .
“We seem to have mastered the 1st of the 48 laws of power which enjoins us thus: “Law 1: Never Outshine the Master. Always make those above you feel comfortably superior. In your desire to please or impress them, do not go too far in displaying your talents or you might accomplish the opposite – inspire fear or insecurity”, he stressed.
He added that, “Unfortunately, this is true in political as well as in religious and cultural settings but it is also true that effective mentoring cannot take place when we are forced to over conceal our talents in order not to stir resentment or risk being canceled” .
According to him, “Godfathers don’t develop people much less a nation, they use them instead. If progress must be made, we need a pool of true leaders who will lead us to build a nation and serve others not godfathers who demand that we always ran to them to kiss the ring. Godfathers always see the masses around them as objects to be manipulated for their own empowerment and often sadistic entertainment”.
The former Speaker stressed that, “Under the grip of godfathers, Leadership is seen as a zero sum game where only the person in office shines and the light must not reflect on others around him/her. The godfather immediately drops an elbow on the throat of any of his followers who tries to raise his/her head. Lies and truth do not matter, loyalty is prized above competence and total obedience is demanded. The godfather, just like a cult leader, is driven at his or her core by the death instinct. They will rather annihilate than nuture. What a pathetic spectacle!”
He stressed that, “As an example, the 2023 elections are almost with us. No one denies the fact that some deeply disconcerting and disqualifying allegations have been made about some key candidates. Some have been accused of forgery/perjury; some of links with terrorist and drug trafficking including substance abuse”.
He continued that, “Some are accused of telling outright lies. I thought ordinary decency demands that we stop and insist to know the truth concerning these allegations but that is not the case. Those hired con men who are desperately trying to distract us from establishing the truth of these allegations may justly be pronounced enemies of our democracy”.
According to him, “Every nation is ruled by elite consensus while all nations that have suffered ruins, fell due to elite complacency. The right to be informed is a democratic right which we cannot fail to exercise without attracting immediate consequences” .
“At least, let there be consensus after we unearth the truth that we agree to handover leadership of our nation to an ex-drug baron, fraudster, terrorist sponsor or to those who lie under oath. Why is it difficult for us to handle the truth? How do we make progress when we are complacent about things that matter the most to us?”, Dogara asked.
