I believe no country is completely innocent or in one way or the other never participated in political entanglements,for this is the irony of the game, politics. People go at extreme lengths to secure positions or posts, leveraging connections,manipulating systems or bending the truth. To the politically aware citizens, the idea of innocent politics is seen as a myth
My county, Nigeria , is one in which questioning the system often leaves you exhausted, because the more you ask, the less sense it makes. The level of injustice brought about by the so called political actors (those drunk on the power of politics) is maddening
People are often perverted by power. A man may believe that once he enters into power, it will be easy to change the system. But what he doesn’t realize is that power itself can be intoxicating. In the process, he may end up forgetting the very purpose that led him there in the first place
People (political actors), who are on the right side of justice based on the proposed value of the spectrum they place themselves in the political game, believe their actions are unquestionable, convincing themselves that whatever they do is justified simply because they see themselves on the 'right' or 'good' side of the spectrum. This is the myth of politics when we believe that politics always bend to virtue but in the other case, virtue always bend to politics.
It takes strong will, personal power,disciplined self control and selflessness to lead effectively. True leadership is rooted in selflessness; wanting to serve rather than being served. Leadership is meant to be a frame of service not an opportunity to be served. It is easy to say that one should resist the intoxication of power but in actual sense, it is far harder to live by it. A man who doesnt understand how politics work can quickly be swayed by politics, consumed by ambition and corrupted by influence.
Anyone that wants to enter the position of leadership must admit or recognise his/her own vulnerabilities that they too are human and therefore susceptible to pride, power, greed and the same power drunkenness that affected those before them. I like to call them, "the ancestors". This is why leadership demands more than ambition. It requires self-discipline, selflessness and a constant awareness of our shared humanity. To see people not as prawns or subjects but as equals is the true definition of leadership.
I will end on this note with a question: do you believe you have what it takes to change a corrupted system without going through the ways of the corrupted system? I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
