Next Generation Leadership: Navigating The Future -By Mallam Sakariyau Lawal Yittametu

BEING A LECTURE DELIVERED AT THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIAN STUDENT (NANS), JOINT CAMPUS COMMITTEE (JCC), KWARA STATE AXIS TO MARK THE 6TH EDITION OF NANS UNITY WEEK (24-30TH NOVEMBER, 2019) AND IN COMMEMORATION OF THE 24TH CORONATION ANNIVERSARY OF HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS ALH. (DR.) IBRAHIM SULU GAMBARI CFR, MAIMARTABA, EMIR OF ILORIN, TODAY SATURDAY 30TH NOVEMBER 2019 AT NUT HALL, ILORIN, KWARA STATE, NIGERIA.

All protocols are diligently and duely observed

Keywords: Leadership, Generation and Future

INTRODUCTION
I want to thank the organizers of this proramme for finding me worthy of speaking here today even though I don’t see myself as a speaker but as a learner speaking in the midst of learned scholars and senior colleagues in academics. Therefore, I want to seek your indulgence to see my speech here today as a learning process which is open to critique and possibly corrections from the audience.

Secondly, the topic of discussion today is another area that will call for amazement because how will historian who deals with the past will navigate and interrogate the future. It may look paradoxical but in the field of academics, every discipline is exposed to the universality of knowledge. Hence, History which studies the past to understand the present and plan for the future is of great relevance to this topic. One can infer from the foregoings that, Historian can discuss future leadership.

Concept of Leadership

The root word of Leadership is “Lead” which means to be in front in order to pave way or to make people go in the right direction. Another word, “leader” is prefix in leadership. A Leader is a person/individual who is in front of others to show them the way or give them a sense of right direction. Leadership therefore, “is the ability to persuade others to seek defines objectives enthusiastically” (Davis, 1981). It is also the human factor that binds a group together and motivates it towards goals.

Furthermore, there are qualities expected of a good leader before he/she can lead enthusiastically. Some of the qualities are: Honesty, fairness, justice, intelligence, hard work, perseverance, friendliness, innovative, foresight, good listener e.t.c. However, it is not every human being that posses the afore mentioned qualities but few are endowed by God to posses them. This may explain the belief of the hereditarian theorists that “leaders are born not made”

Concept of Future

Future simply means the time that will come after present or the event that will happen then. Two major things are of importance in this definition ‘Time’ and ‘Event’. Time in the concept of the future may be next minutes, hour, day (tomorrow), next week, month, year, decade, century or millennium. The unfolding events when the time is passing by will determine its remarkability in the affairs of human being. Time can also be examined in the concept of the past, then events may not be of anticipatory but retrospective that is, thinking of the achievements and failures of the past leaders and institutions, thereby interrogating their past with a view to appreciate their achievements and learn from their mistakes. In view of the above, one can see future as a product of yesterday and today.

Concept of Generation

A generation is “all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively”. it can also be described as the average period, generally considered to be about thirty years, during which children are born and grow up, become adults, and beginning to have children of their own e.g. independent generation in Nigeria i.e. people that were born in the 60s.

The Future Generation and its Leadership

There is a popular saying that “youths are the leaders of tomorrow”. This is a statement of facts because leaders of today will set with the sun of today. For instance let’s cast our mind back to the Nigeria of yesterday in the pre-colonial times of great empires and kingdoms. Where were the heroes and heroines such as : Mai Idris Aloma, Magihili, Usumanu b. Fodio, Amina of Zaria, Are Latosa, Efunsetan Aniwura, Bashorun Ga, Oranmiyan, Alaafin Ajaka, Sango, Abiodun, Aole, Ovoramwen of Benin, jaja of Opobo, Are Afonja, Sheu Alimi etc. what about the Nationalists who were to me revolutionaries of Nigeria, they fought colonialism to independence. Many of them were youths in their thirties and forties but fought with the spirit of patriotism, won and set pace for political leadership in Nigeria. Where were Ahmadu Bello Sardauna of Sokoto, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief Anthony Enahoro, Mallam Aminu Kano, Chief Samuel Oladoke Akintola, FRA Williams, TOS Benson, Joseph Tarka, Sule Maito, Sani Okin, Buhari Edun, Olusola Saraki among others. These people have gone with their era and generation. They are remembered today by their legacy either good or bad.

However, what we mean by ‘today’ and ‘tomorrow’ in this lecture is era/period/generation. Historians have been able to equate a century (100 years) with an era, a period or a generation because an average human being lives between the age of 50 years to 70years, only few survives 70years above and very few survives hundred years above. The highest life expectancy in 2019 is 89years in Monaco (Europe) while the lowest is 53years in Sierra Leone, average is71 years. In Nigeria for instance, the life expectancy is 55 years, the third lowest in the world after Sierra-Leone, Chad and Central African Republic.

Furthermore, an average Muslim is expected to live for 60years and a little above because Prophet Muhammed in one his Hadith said: the life of my people (Ummah) is between 60 and 70 years. This is tally with an average life expectancy as at 2019. It is wise for individual therefore to plan his life time within an average of 60 and70. Please subtract your last birthday from 60 and tell us the balance. My point of emphasis here Ladies and gentlemen is that leadership of future generation lies in the hands of today’s youth.

The Nigerian Youth and beacon of Future Leadership

A youth is an individual within the age of 18 and 40 as stated in Nigeria constitution. This in practical terms is anyone born between 1979 and 2001. Let’s examine briefly the life of Nigerian youth since 1979.

The year 1979 was a transition period from military rule under General Olusegun Obasanjo to civilian government led by Alh. Sheu Usman Shagari known as the Second Republic. Second republic was believed to be the catalyst of under development in Nigeria. It was marred with corruption, favoritism, nepotism, mal-administration and ethnic chauvinism. The political leaders then who were beneficiaries of free education, government scholarship and other benefits that catapulted them to the top at a younger age began to destroyed institutions in Nigeria by their activities consciously or unconsciously.

Governmental institutions like; education, health, social amenities started declining due to diversion of funds meant for these projects. They lack focus and vision for Nigeria except politicization of issues which aimed at nothing but personal aggrandishment. The period between 1979 to 2001 witnessed change of governments from Shagari government, Buhari/Idi Agbon, Babangida military rule, Sani Abacha, Earnest Shonekan and Abdulsalam, Abubakar, and return of Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999.

Time will not permit me to delve into the activities of the above administrations one by one but its effect on the population of Nigeria born in this period is my concern. This generation lacks virtually all the services required to be offered by the government.

They are unlucky to see working Nigeria where government provide services to its citizen at minimal or no cost. What this generation know about Nigeria are; poor educational system, maribound health care system, bad road, moral decadence, prostitution, armed robbery, advance fee fraud(419), cybernetic crime, human trafficking, drug abuse, drug trafficking, cultism, ritual killings, political thuggery, corruption, incest, examination malpractice e.t.c. The sad question is how can this generation of youths lead future generation patriotically? Your guess may be the same as mine, impossible?, What about time that will surely usher in the future which is not in our control? Then, Nigeria future is uncertainty of uncertainty.

However, the good news is that it takes a visionary leader a little time to turn around the bastardized governmental institutions. It may be difficult but it is possible. This is evident in Rewanda under President Paul Kigama, Cuba under Fidelis Castro, Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Vladmier Lenin of Russia, Abraham Lincoin of America, Winson Churchil of Britain, Adolf Hitler of Germany, Mao zedeng of China, Haile Selassie of Ethiopia e.t.c. In fact, the Nigeria nationalists were in their thirties and forties when they took over the mantle of leadership in Nigeria during the era of de-colonization. Awolowo forty-five (45) years, Sardauna forty-four(44) years, Tafawa Balewa forty-five(45) years, Akintola was forty-four(44) years, Aminu Kano was thirty-four(34) years, Anthony Enahoro thirty-one (31) years, only Nnamdi Azikiwe was 50 years as at 1954 when regional government that provided for self government/ autonomy to the people of Nigeria started.

These set of young Nigerians worked assiduously to develop Nigeria politically, economically, socially and diplomatically. The regions were competing favourably among themselves for development. They established educational institutions up to the universities, industrial estates in Kaduna, Ibadan, Enugu, Kano, Lagos, marketing boards for agricultural produce and so on.

It is my belief that, if the young Nationalists can transform Nigeria both in human and infrastructural development, the young future leaders of Nigeria can do better.

The expected roles of the future Leaders

Despite the ugly trends in the governance of Nigerian especially in the last 40 years, the country was able to sustain its unity in diversity, strong economy and voice of Africa. Also, suffering from resources plundering by political leaders in Nigeria which resulted in denials of social services to our youths has not deter them from pursuing genuine nation building agenda rather it makes Nigeria youths stronger, self reliance and believe in divine intervention. These have rekindled our hope, that future leadership is capable of re-building Nigeria.
According to professor Eyo Ita in 1936 he said to the youth of Calabar that: “this is the day of Nigeria youth. It must build a new social order, for whereas yesterday belonged to our father and their distant future belongs to posterity today and the immediate tomorrow are ours. We can and must shape them according to our needs and desire”

The journey to the future started now and the following are the roles of the youths;

Strive to acquire sound education that will give you a broad based global knowledge.

Avail yourself the opportunity of acquiring various skills in businesses and small scale industries to make you a self reliant citizen.

Organize yourselves into a community based development groups inform of NGOs, CBOs and others. This will give you series of roles in community development and equip you with leadership skills.
Join a reasonable and government recognized pressure groups to monitor the activities of government and offer a workable solutions to problems that may confront the nation.
Be an agent of peace through various peace initiatives such as, peace advocacy group, sensitization programmes, crises prevention, peace talk and fostering love and harmony among heterogeneous groups in Nigeria.

Get involved in campaign against social vices and moral decadences such as cultism, examination malpractices, drug abuse, prostitution, cybernetic crimes, human trafficking, terrorism, kidnapping e.t.c.

Join political party of your choice based on your preferred ideologies as enshrine in the party manifestoes. Don’t be a political thug and don’t encourage political thuggery. See the party as a medium of building your political career and as a means of rendering services to your immediate community and nation at large.

Aspire for elective offices in your consistuencies, don’t be a rubber stamp, on-lookers, bench warmer or political errand boys. Always have it in mind that your ideas of nation building can manifest best when you have a political/economic power.

Be Godly and religious in whatever you are doing. This will guide you to make a right decision and do justice in any matter before you.

Pray for Nigeria always because this is our own world and all our actions and inactions will be accounted for on the last Day of Judgment regardless of our living condition. The more comfortable Nigeria is the better for our good deeds.

Conclusion

The lecture has been able to examine Nigeria yesterday, today and tomorrow. Also, the roles of the Nigeria youths have been highlighted to prepare them as the future generation leaders purposely for nation building and social engineering. I have been a strong believer of a better Nigeria, a nation where peace and justice shall reign.
O God of creation
Guide our noble course
Guide our leader’s right
Help our youth the truth to know
In love and honesty to grow
And live in just and truth
Great love with height and attain
To build a nation where peace and justice shall reign
Thanks for your attention