- He called for a reassessment of Nigeria’s leadership processes
The Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Kukah, has described Nigeria’s leadership trajectory as a product of “accidental leadership cycles,” asserting that most of the country’s past and present leaders, including President Bola Tinubu and his predecessors, assumed power without adequate preparation for the demands of governance.
Bishop Kukah made these remarks on Sunday during the commissioning of the new Start-Rite School building and the 4th Amaka Ndoma-Egba Memorial Lecture in Abuja. He reflected on Nigeria’s history of leadership, highlighting a recurring trend of unprepared leaders taking charge due to circumstances rather than deliberate planning.
“If we look at Nigeria’s leadership journey, you will find that almost every leader who came to power did so by accident,” Kukah said. He criticised Tinubu’s current administration, stating, “Despite claiming to be prepared for the role, [Tinubu] is clearly struggling. He took over from Buhari, who had already disengaged from governance.”
Kukah traced this pattern back through Nigeria’s leadership history, citing examples like Goodluck Jonathan, who became president unexpectedly following Umaru Yar’Adua’s death, and Olusegun Obasanjo, who was released from prison to assume leadership.
“The missing link in all of this is knowledge and preparation,” Kukah added. He lamented that while Nigeria has embraced democratic principles like “one man, one vote,” the system has repeatedly failed to produce competent leaders capable of addressing the nation’s evolving challenges.
He called for a reassessment of Nigeria’s leadership processes to ensure that future leaders are adequately prepared to navigate the complexities of modern governance.