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| Mock Conference in Ota: Re-discovering Nigeria by Destroying Dangerous Myths |
 PRINTABLE VERSION |
Deliberations at the workshop also exemplified the axiom that there are always two sides to a coin, by objectively concluding that the leadership problem plaguing the nation has also been made worse by the absence of politically discerning and assertive citizenry, who are conscious of their rights and willing to demand them always. The entire citizenry has and continues to fail the nation by relegating to the background their civic responsibility of engaging those in leadership positions when they derail. Average citizens have also shown poor commitment to ensuring that all public policies are driven by the interest of the common good, in preference for self-serving ethnic, sectarian, partisan and ideological considerations.
Some other topics that generated heated debate at the workshop which unknowingly turned into a mock national dialogue, were the issues of equal representation for women in the polity, proper definition of Nigeria’s national interest, endemic corruption, sustainable development vs. civilization, unilateralism vs. multilateralism, pandemic spread of HIV, and deliberative democracy.
One major revelation at the workshop that must be stressed with emphasis, is that our failures as individual citizens and as members of micro family units, also mirrors the many deficiencies and things we dislike about our country. The highly interactive mood at the “mock dialogue” made it possible for participants to honestly share their personal experiences about moments when they were turn between achieving personal goals and compromising the timeless values of honesty, integrity and fairness.
The confessions of some participants which were freely volunteered, about instances when they had cause to compromise personal values, helped the entire house to appreciate the enormous challenges and temptations that public office holders contend with. Participants agreed that those in leadership positions are often pushed to compromise established values because of in-ordinate or self-centered expectations of members of their constituencies or major stakeholders in the society.
While the challenge of managing expectations is real and very Herculean, the confab resolved that it should never be rationalised by current and budding leaders as justification for bad leadership and poor implementation of well-intentioned public policies.
Reflections
The African Leadership Forum (ALF) and its principal staff deserve commendation for exhibiting uncanny creativity in designing constituent programmes of the 5-day workshop. The ALF being conscious of the fact that most participants at the workshop were less than the age of forty, built into the programme a session for interaction between reference personalities in the public and private sectors. The mentor chat as this session was labeled provided a forum for invited personalities to share their experiences, and most importantly convince the next generation of leaders that they can influence and transform Nigeria for greatness without compromising the honoured value of integrity.
On reflection I am tempted to believe that the exclusive choice of two women as mentors at the ‘’mock dialogue’’ was a deliberate move to position the integrity and achievements of these women as enviable reference for the Nigeria society, most importantly men. The informed choice of female mentors is in tandem with the issue of gender equality which was recurrent in all workshop syndicate sessions.
It should be placed on record that the two mentors namely Mrs. Joy Ogwu, the Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (N.I.I.A.) and Mrs. Bisi Olateru-Olagbegi, a renowned lawyer and women’s rights advocate, displayed rare humility and infectious sense of responsibility. These women readily admitted that their generation which has produced the present crop of leaders has failed the nation. They sincerely apologised on behalf of this generation for failing to provide good leadership that is worth emulating by the next generation of leaders that the ALF workshop seeks to create.
Participation as the last ALF workshop is a privilege I cherish greatly and would gladly wish any young professional in the public or private sector. It is instructive to emphasise that all participants at the workshop beyond coming from different professional backgrounds, also came with lots of bias, stereotypes and strong opinions about what they assume is wrong with Nigeria as an entity and as member of a fast emerging world without borders.
The methodology at the workshop focused on encouraging a deliberative forum, an approach that is totally strange to the antagonistic culture of debate, that we are all properly schooled in from infancy to adulthood. We all discovered to our chagrin at the end of the workshop, that reaching a consensual agreement about the way forward for Nigeria was not as difficult as we all thought.
At the end of the intellectually rewarding dialogue, participants collectively resolved to embark on deliberate repositioning of themselves as agents of change and transformation. This challenge, though Herculean, is a clarion call that every Nigerian citizen, particularly those in leadership positions must heed before the sun sets on our collective dreams as a nation.
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Writer Profile
Iganmode
I work presently as Head,Strategy and Clients Service with Bluebird Communications Limited, a leading integrated marketing communications consultancy based in Lagos, Nigeria.
Before Bluebird I worked as a Product Manager in the Consumer and Retail Banking Department of Afribank Nigeria Plc. I joined the Bank on the 15th of November 1999 after garnering rich experience in journalism, advertising, public relations and marketing. I have in the last five years had the opportunity of Heading Units such as Media/Investors Relations, Internal Communications and Publications and Advertising and Corporate Promotions in the Corporate Affairs Department of the Bank. I edited Afribank News, the Bank’s quarterly house journal between January 2002 and June 2003 and was also responsible for launching content of the magazine on the Bank’s website.
I started my career in Journalism with the Vanguard Newspapers as a Reporter on the Literary Desk of the national newspaper in 1990 and joined the services of Rosabel Advertising Limited in October 1991 as a Trainee Executive in the Media Department. During my stint in the Media Department of this highbrow agency I undertook schedules such as media planning, buying, monitoring and comparative rating of media audience.
I returned to the print media in 1995 by taking employment with the Guardian Newspapers as Editorial Supplement Executive. I, in this capacity combined successfully the onerous schedule of writing news and features regularly on various business sectors and marketing newspapers in The Guardian stable for profitability and acceptance. The Vanguard Newspaper again beckoned on me in 1997 to join the pioneering team of professionals that established the newspaper's editorial supplement Desk as a Senior Supplement’s Reporter. After a very brief stint with Vanguard Newspapers I took up employment with Tanus Communications Limited, a full-fledged marketing communications company, as a Senior Media Relations Officer.
While in the Media Relations Department of Tanus Communications, I consulted for several companies in the areas of media and public relations, press a gentry, events and issues management, publishing, monitoring and evaluation of media/public perception of issues, advertising campaign planning and monitoring etc. Prominent among the companies I consulted for were Union Bank Plc, Chartered Bank Plc, NAL Merchant Bank, Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), Mobil, NICON Insurance, and Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE), Petroleum Special Trust Fund (PTF) etc. I was promoted as the Head of the dynamic department, before I left the firm to join Afribank Nigeria Plc in November 1999.
I am a 1994 graduate of Mass Communications from the Ogun State Polytechnic, Abeokuta and also bagged a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) degree in the Upper Class category from the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) in 2001. I am a qualified Associate Member of industry relevant professional associations such as the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Federation of African Public Relations Associations (FAPRA) and the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM).
I love reading, writing, surfing the web, watching films and discussing issues with contemporary and global relevance. I have been writing poems with different themes for over a decade and plan to publish my collection in the no distant future . I am married to an Industrial Chemist and we are blessed with two kids aged 4 and 2 respectively. I am the current President of Vision Club, an investment and leadership development-driven association of young and upwardly mobile professionals in the public and private sector.
Omo'ba Olumide Olalekan Idowu
Bluebird Communications Limited, Lagos, Nigeria
( Mobile) : 08023236493 ,
Website:www.freewebs.com/olumideidowu
E–Mail: o.idowu@afribank.com or mideidowu@yahoo.com
Web Resume Page: http://olumide.resume.4t.com
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