BY TheCable
Christopher Kolade, former Nigerian high commissioner to the UK, has lashed out at political advertisements comparing President Goodluck Jonathan to respected world leaders.
Speaking at the 6th Christopher Kolade Symposium organised by the Nigerian Leadership Initiative (NLI) in Lagos on Thursday, the former chairman of Cadbury Plc, said Jonathan was lacking in some leadership qualities, citing a political rally held by the president in Kano a day after Boko Haram attacks in which 59 boys lost their lives.
He said: “Parts of leadership qualities you need to imbibe include ability to take responsibility. Apart from being responsible, you must also be able to sacrifice for others and you must be able to add value.
“In leadership, you cannot make value-added contribution until you are able to identify what is it you don’t like about this country; what is it that you can accept and what is it you cannot accept. The essence is in you. The capacity to identify what is right or wrong is not what you can borrow or buy. It is in you.
“Some nights ago, I was watching television and some people were telling us that we have never had it so good. I am in my 80s and I can tell you that Nigeria has had it much better than now.
“They even said it was not easy for Lee Kuan Yew, it was not easy for Nelson Mandela and it was not easy for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Mr President, keep doing it. Keep doing the good works because we who are with you are much more than those who are against you.
“Tell me something, is that part of Nollywood? Is that part of an entertainment? Let me cite one example. They always say I am father to all and I accept. If somebody makes me leader of a group and there is something in that group, l should be able to stand by the group.
“Let me tell you, if 59 boys are killed in Yobe State and you as a leader, the next day went to Kano state and danced in a political rally, then I say, that is not leadership. It can’t be.
“This is not about not being an Ijaw or non-Ijaw. It is not about being a south-south or not south-south. It is about leadership. It is about the fact that those who were killed were human beings.
“If some suicide bombers bombed a place and you as a leader has political rally the next day, the least you can do is to postpone the programme. Even if they are not your children, all you need to do is to sympathise.
“If it comes to a point that we don’t care about who is leading the country, then we have lost it. We know we are in deficit. What we have today are leaders who are in pursuit of personal gains and not about the future.”
Kolade was appointed chairman of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) by Jonathan in January 2012 but resigned in September 2013.
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