Buhari needs wisdom to rewrite history
History is very important in casting light over human affairs. History denotes past events or the study of same, including inquiries into the past. That is why commentators are saying that “history cannot be kinder to President Buhari because he was removed from office by his military colleagues after just 20 months for his rigidity, and incapacity to respond proactively to the dire economic immobilism of the 1980s.”
They further say that “a senator and principal actor in the 1985 coup d’état that ousted Buhari was said to have cynically declared after Buhari won the election in 2015: just wait for one year and you will soon know why we removed him in 1985.” Though all generations have similar values which they express differently, but I have my reservations about the said senator. If that senator was Nigeria’s Head of State between 1983 and 1985, he wouldn’t have performed better than Buhari. Those who took over government with the senator, what did they achieve? Perhaps, the senator needs to write his memoir to let Nigerians know specifically his contributions to the growth of the nation in appointed and elected capacities.
Every generation writes its own history irrespective of circumstances. No mortal should ignore the relevance of history in the affairs of nations. History equips us to understand human experience and how to organize our lives and the society. But for history, how would younger generations have known the weakness inherent in Mr President’s personality. History makes us to learn and not to make same mistakes we or our past leaders made. Also, history makes us work diligently towards attaining greatness so that we will have a better nation.
It is rather unfortunate that Nigeria is blessed with politicians who preach “change” without changing themselves, especially when they mean a change of a particular brand. Most politicians who parade themselves as “leaders” are often defensive, instead of being strategic and focused with a well-thought out vision for the future. In a bid to camouflage their intellectual inadequacies in governance, they claim to be pragmatic; a pragmatism that symbolizes nothing but failure.
President Buhari needs to constantly lead, while other appointed and elected pubic office holders must equally display good leadership qualities in their offices. To support this theory, let us consider a simple military analogy: A peacetime army will usually survive with good administration and management throughout the entire chain of command, coupled with efficient leadership at the highest echelon. Conversely, a wartime army certainly needs competent leadership at all levels of its organization. With my knowledge of military history, I am yet to read or hear about a general who figured out how to manage his troops effectively into battle, they must be led to victory. This tells us that there is difference between management and leadership. President Buhari and his team at all levels of government must be committed and sincere leaders.
Management of a nation whose economy is in recession is about coping with its complexities, while leadership is about coping with change. The Buhari-led government needs to change the misfortune of the nation from recession to prosperity. Economic recession in Nigeria in the early 1980s with a population of barely 75 million during Cold War, is different from that with a population of about 200 million in a globalized world.
Technological change laced with deregulation of markets, poorly performing stocks and slowing Chinese economy, as well as regional wars and unstable crude oil pricing, are among several factors that demand strongly for genuine leaders. The consequence is that the methodology applied yesterday to solve economic challenges of a nation, or doing it better by say 10 percent, is no longer valid for success today.
So, President Buhari and his team must seize the opportunity presented by the recession to rewrite history and prove his numerous critics wrong. The economy must not be depressed. That is why President Buhari needs wisdom. An important component of wisdom is to have skills to see things as they really are and not just as they appear. Wisdom will enable President Buhari navigate the nation through the storm of economic recession. Ideas of the federal government must be rooted in what is true, but not wrapped in politics and voodoo analysis.
Corrupt ideas will frustrate President Buhari even if he works faster, harder and more diligent. All these efforts will land Nigeria in economic depression which is worse than a recession. Even with positive attitude, President Buhari still needs wisdom to set his vision clearly. Articulating a vision now is not too late. In an economic recession, what is crucial about President Buhari’s vision as a leader is not its originality but how well it serves the interests of Nigerians. This is because the economy of a nation is about people with their diversity and complexities. Consequently, policy makers must have the capacity to translate President Buhari’s vision into realistic policies and strategies that are people friendly.
Just like Americans know President Obama, it is President Buhari that Nigerians know. Nobody gives a heck about any minister or the chief executive of any parastatal. Nigerians don’t know any minister, chief of staff or secretary to the federal government. If President Buhari actually appointed these guys into office, he should set targets for them and they must deliver irrespective of obstacles to change.
President Buhari must keep his cabinet moving in the right direction. Those members of his cabinet who are stragglers because of their romance with politics must be relieved of their appointments. This is not the time for fancy tales. If President Buhari takes Nigeria out of recession, he will be Nigerians’ hero. Nigerians including commentators and newspaper columnists will celebrate him. People of goodwill including myself will classify him as a leader made of gold, using Plato’s allegory of the metal. If he can’t take Nigeria out of recession soon, his critics would be vindicated. May God help Buhari!
MA Johnson