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Introduction
World politics has several fundamental lessons to teach us about leadership. Here is one of the major ones: leadership is parenthood.
Parenthood entails the responsibilities of being a parent. Parents nurture, support, and encourage their children to be triumphant in life. Undeniably, parental support and encouragement pave the way to producing successful children. Likewise, leadership entails the responsibilities of a leader, nurturing, supporting and promoting his/her country. Indeed, true leaders produce great, dynamic societies, capable of producing successful citizenry. Therefore, to grow, develop, and succeed in this realistic world, largely marked by zero-sum games, leaders must be real parents of their people, advancing, sustaining and encouraging their countrymen and women. If leaders failed to embark upon these parental/leadership responsibilities in their country, their country is bound to fail miserably, and their people will lag far behind, and suffer tremendous hardships.
In this article, an attempt is made to demonstrate that leadership is parenthood, and that much of the failures and sufferings in Africa, or what made Africa "the world's poorest continent," according to IMF, are rooted in a general lack of understanding that leadership is parenthood among several African leaders.
Leadership is parenthood: the Proof
Who, among leaders in "developed" countries, will abandon the people they are elected to serve only to serve African countries first? In particular, who, among Swiss leaders, American leaders, German leaders, British leaders, Canadian leaders, French leaders, Italian leaders, Japanese leaders will be stealing from his/her own people only to open bank accounts in Nigeria, Ghana, Sudan, Rwanda, Somalia, Kenya, Zaire, Ethiopia, Uganda? Or, who, among leaders in "industrialized" countries, will be buying plots of lands and/or houses in Togo, Sierra Leon, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Gambia, Liberia, or Zimbabwe?
The answer to the above questions, and to innumerable others similar to them, is NONE.
None of the Swiss, French, Canadian, American, British, German, Japanese, Italian leaders has his/her country's money hidden in African banks. These leaders wisely take care of their countries and their people first. Indeed, "America first", we often hear from American leaders, is not just a political cliche in America. American leaders do not steal from American people only to hide the loot in Nigerian or Sudanese banks, for instance. "French first" is not an empty political phrase in France. French leaders do not fly to Zaire or Somalia for a medical checkup or treatment; they are treated in their own hospitals, built and maintained by themselves.
Similarly, "Japan first" is not a political rhetoric or gimmick in Japan. Japanese leaders are bent on making their country the most technological giant in the world. As such, they wisely invest their country's resources in their country and not in Uganda or Kenya.
All told, the leaders of these "developed" or "industrialized" countries prudently take care of their countrymen and women first, just as real parents take care of their own children first. This rational thinking, "my family first," is equally the norm within the animal kingdom. Those of us who watch Discovery, Animal Planet, Natural Geographic channels know quite well that animals wisely take care of their own families first.
Accordingly, a pride of lions does not kill preys only to turn around and leave them for jackals to eat when lion cubs are hungry. Similarly, jackals do not kill their preys only to leave them for the fox family to eat when young jackals are starving.
So, the conventional wisdom within "developed" countries and, yes, within the animal kingdom, is "my family first," demonstrating clearly and loudly that leadership is parenthood.
Now, let us turn to Africa, and examine how several African leaders understand the word, leadership. Specifically, do they, on a collective sense, take leadership as parenthood? Let us see.
Is Leadership parenthood in Africa?
Behavior of several African leaders leaves no room for doubt; their behavior clearly suggests that they do not take leadership as parenthood. Leadership to them is the road to personal enrichment, often at its worst, sustained and maintained by (a) stealing from their own people only to hide the loot in their private bank accounts in foreign countries, (b) traveling abroad for medical checkup or treatment, instead of building and maintaining excellent hospitals at home to serve their fellow citizens, and (c) sending their own children abroad to study in better schools instead of building and maintaining excellent schools to benefit the entire population. A good number of African leaders have yet to understand that leadership amounts to parenthood – improving, sustaining and advancing their fellow countrymen and women.
When leaders do not understand that they are the parents of their own people, leading the people from the status quo, the existing condition or state of affairs, to a better life; when leaders do not understand that world politics is mostly governed by realism of zero-sum games, where each country is basically acting on its own national interests; when leaders do not see the urgent need to advance their country, socially, economically, and politically, their country will lag far behind, and the people suffer tremendously. The shameful backward nature of several African countries today is clearly related to this general lack of understanding (among several African leaders) that leadership is parenthood.
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Amaka for Kids
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