•As Lumumba says Africa suffering from leadership deficit
•Why Oloye’s 10th memorial was devoid of partisanship, Saraki
By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja
The Sultan of Sokoto and President of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, NSCIA, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III has tasked Nigerian leaders to always uphold the tenets of truth, honesty, transparency and accountability.
This is even as a former Director of Kenyan Anti-corruption agency, Prof. Patrick Lumumba challenged the followership in Africa to develop the habit of calling their leaders to questions from time to time in the interest of good governance.
The Sultan of Sokoto and Lumumba, a Professor of Law, spoke yesterday in Abuja at the 10th memorial anniversary for the second Republic Senate Leader and late strongman of Kwara politics, Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki.
Alhaji Abubakar, who was the Chairman of the occasion, equally told the nation’s politicians to embark on their campaign honestly like gentlemen, convince people to vote for them and discharge their responsibility to the best of their knowledge, after being voted into offices.
At the event, which was attended by top government officials, traditional rulers and lawmakers among others, the Sultan of Sokoto said, “We are interested in what happens in our country and this is a very serious period with politics dominating the space and we are talking about leadership and followership.
“The topic chosen by the organizers is so apt, and important because we are into political activities and we are looking for leaders to steer the ship of State to an excellent destination.
“We must look at who a leader should be, what leadership should not be, what we should do as followers to ensure we have a good leader.
“I want to thank the guest lecturer for coming all the way from Kenya to talk to us, he has been so blunt in telling the powers that be, what should be done as regards leadership, because he has always been the conscience of the people and if you have good leaders, you will have good followership, if you have bad followership, you will have bad leadership.
“Because we know the importance of pricking peoples conscience, telling them what to do and how to do things. Shiek Usman Dan Fodio said ‘Conscience is an open wound only truth can heal it’. So, we have to tell our leaders the whole truth.
“Sometimes when we say the truth as it is, some leaders don’t feel so good about it, but we will continue saying the truth in whatever we do and whatever we say.
“When we do so, leaders should take such comments, as advice from people who are so concerned about what happens to the people that the Almighty Allah place under their care as leaders, so that you can discharge and acquit yourself most honorably here on earth. Because Almighty Allah will ask you when you meet him.
“What did you do with the lives I gave you in the world. For leaders we want to urge you to always uphold the truth, be honest, be transparent and be accountable because Almighty Allah will ask you.
“I pray our politicians, so many of them are here, will listen to what Lumumba is going to say and take some away and go and use in your campaigns.
“Campaign honestly, campaign like a gentleman and convince people to vote for you and when you do get the votes, discharge your responsibility to the best of your knowledge”, he said.
In a lecture he delivered extemporaneously, Prof Lumumba noted that the continent of Africa is not at ease because it is suffering from the deficit of leadership.
Lumumba declared that for as long as Nigeria is not at ease, Africa will never be at ease.
Pointing out that leadership is not the occupation of the President or the leader alone, the Professor of Law made it clear that it (leadership) is about service and honour and privilege to serve.
He therefore tasked the followership in Africa to cultivate the habit of calling their leaders to question, constantly.
According to him, “When those in governments fail to perform, it is the duty of the people to rise and to remove such”, he said.
“Many of you here present in this assembly, who are honored and respected and claimed to be leaders, you have a duty to ensure that you are in front in order to serve and not to be served
“I’m suggesting to us that true and sustainable leadership also required that you have a followership that is in light of followership, that calls you to account, a followership that is going to make demands of you.
“A followership that when you say that you are going to improve the quality of their food. They do not believe that agriculture stops on that day, but they believe that agriculture must be intensified and the technology must be used.
“A followership which knows that when you say you are going to deliver heaven on earth, they know that that is merely an advertisement, that you are incapable of delivering heaven on earth.
“A followership that knows that when you are promising to do things within 100 days, which ordinarily can only be done in five years, they know that you’re alive”, he said.
In his welcome address, former Senate president, Dr Bukola Saraki noted that his father’s wide contacts “made it possible that in our family we have members of all the big parties, from PDP to APC and others.
“Oloye (as late Saraki was fondly called) was a man of many parts and his followers are in all the different political parties that exist in our country today.
“That is the more reason why we have decided to ensure this remembrance lecture is devoid of partisanship. It is simply about our country, Nigeria”, he said.
Among the dignitaries at the ceremony were; the Vice Presidential candidate of the PDP and Governor of Delta State, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, Chairman of Nigeria’s Governors Forum and Governor of Sokoto State, Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Borno State Governor and representative of President Muhammadu Buhari, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum,
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila and Sultan of Sokoto State, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar.
Others include; former Senate President, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, former Inspector General of Police, Alhaji MD Abubakar as well as former Governors and Ministers.
