Why Nigerians Are Yet To Get Desired Leadership – Ladoja

Ahead of the 2015 general election, a former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, has called on politicians to serve the people who elect them, rather than aiming to rule over the electorate.

Ladoja, who is seeking a return to the Agodi Government House in 2015 on the platform of Accord Party, said good leaders must build institutions and sustainable structures that could produce quality leaders for tomorrow.

He made this known at the International Leadership Lecture for Students of Tertiary Institutions in South West Nigeria, organised by the Reading Awareness Society for Development in Africa, in conjunction with Foundation for Creative Entrepreneurs.

The lecture with the theme, “Becoming the dream leader”, was held to honour the ex-governor, who clocked 70 years recently.

While calling on the students to work hard and uphold excellence as the yardstick for success, Ladoja said, “Learning is a lifelong experience and it is not limited to schools but everywhere. Excellence will always create room for you. The difference between failure and success is extra mile.

“We are yet to get the desired leadership that this nation deserves because everybody wants to rule but a good leader will rather create institutions that will rule. When institutions are there everybody will enjoy. Let’s build institutions rather than build personalities. The elected are not supposed to rule but serve us, service should be placed above everything”.

Chairman of the occasion, emeritus Professor, Oladipo Akinkugbe, said literacy was a major criterion for being an outstanding leader. He encouraged the students to imbibe the culture of humility in becoming outstanding leader in the country.

He said, “Being literate is the major criterion in the democratic process. It is important to link education with democracy because the electorate must understand the happenings around the democratic settings.

“The capacity to motivate and inspire are ingredients of a good leader. Intellectual arrogance is a sin; it is important that a good leader must be humble. There is the need for the generation of youths to equip themselves with abilities to right the wrongs in this country. They should learn to serve”.