WE oftentimes blame politics for all the ills and problems we suffer today. Try asking anybody on the street for the reasons of his/her difficulties, and not a day will pass by without someone blaming it all on too much politicking. Many in fact have become brilliant in waxing arguments to support their claim so that it is almost a struggle not to be swayed by their rhetoric. Some have gone to the extent of making this their mantra that is why there is no point arguing with them.

        Politics is neither good nor bad. Its worth is best measured through the people manning it. At present, the political arena has become over-populated with pretenders and “trying hards” who are not only weakening the very foundation of the institution by their poor brand of leadership, but who are seemingly immune too to their own incompetence. To make matters even worse, there arise a general feeling of indifference and apathy from the public, which sad to say provides further the impetus for the proliferation of such types of leaders. As a result, we all suffer from the fall out of bad governance.

        The same can be said of any organization. Its success relies heavily on the person in charge of running it on the day-to-day basis. If leadership is weak, the effect soon becomes apparent on the employees and the kind of service it offers. Studies have shown that the kind of leader an organization has correlates strongly on the performance of workers/employees. According to Howell and Coastley, studies in organization show that executive leadership accounts for 45% of organizational performance. Therefore, the choice of leaders should be a prime consideration to the top management. One false decision can snowball into one gigantic trouble which may leave an indelible taint too costly for the whole organization to cover up. It would also be better if those who have fixed an eye on a managerial position will give themselves a thorough self- examination so that they are able to determine whether they are up for the job. No matter how lucrative the position maybe, one should simply be honest to admit that he/she is not really cut for the job. This way much is salvage—people, finances, goodwill, reputation and many others.

        Leadership is, unfortunately, a skill not everyone is born with. Occupying a position of authority and responsibility does not automatically make one a leader. Hilgert and Leonard said that leadership is a process rather than a positional relationship. They added that the real test for leadership is whether subordinates follow willingly. Thus, if subordinates do it only because they are duty bound, are coerced, or are repaying favors - that is not leadership.

        An effective leader according to Wellins is one who is able to lead others to lead themselves. For a leader to do this, he needs to have character and integrity. To lead on the basis of ones willingness alone, chutzpa, or even greed is to put the whole organization in a precarious situation. A leader has to be a thinking leader too. As Sean Ruth in his article, Leadership and Liberation, said, “The key role of a leader is to think. Before everything else, their task is to think of people and situation facing them”. He added further that all other functions such as enabling, empowering, planning, etc. only comes after the basic one — THINKING.

        It is a fact that leaders today are confronted with insurmountable challenges, thus if they did not come prepared for the job, they are in for a lot of disappointments and failures. Meeting the expectations of those around and dealing with the pressures from various stakeholders can be extremely taxing and draining to the soul. These can leave the leaders confused as to how best to facilitate the growth of each and everyone in the organization without compromising too much for the sake of political or personal accommodation. A leader should not let others think for him for if he does, he is inviting ruin to his organization. The talents and potentialities of his subordinates, which should have been utilized for the benefit of the organization, all but wither and die and with them the organization itself.

        A famous cartoon character Kermit, the Frog often say, “It’s not easy being green”. Indeed it is not easy to be different because this difference is what would put one into a unique situation or position. Leadership is like this; it is not easy, but it is a unique gift which enables one to nurture not only himself but his followers as well so that together they are able to hone their latent talents and skills for the benefit of a greater number of people.