Nigeria needs leaders who respect public office, says Tunde Bakare

Pastor Tunde Bakare, founder of the Citadel School of Government (CSG), expressed his deep desire to see a Nigeria that functions effectively for all its citizens. Speaking at the graduation ceremony for the institution's pioneer students in Lagos, Bakare conveyed his confidence that such a Nigeria would emerge within his lifetime.

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We are approaching another significant electoral cycle in Nigeria. Across this country, new leaders will emerge at different levels of government. Existing leaders will confront increasingly complex demands.

As Nigeria approaches a new electoral cycle, Bakare highlighted the immense challenges facing the nation, including insecurity, economic instability, decaying infrastructure, institutional weakness, and a crisis of trust. He asserted that the solution lies not in maintaining the status quo, but in cultivating leaders who view public office as a sacred trust, not a personal enterprise. These leaders, he stressed, must prioritize the common good, possess the competence to translate vision into policy, and have the courage to implement those policies effectively.

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The solution to these challenges is not more of the same. The solution is leaders who understand that public office is a sacred trust, not personal enterprise.

Addressing the graduating students, Bakare described them as the new breed of leaders poised to break the cycle of incompetence and corruption. He emphasized that they were leaving with more than just a diploma; they were equipped with a framework for governance that transcends political, ethnic, and sectional interests, enabling them to grasp the bigger picture. Bakare charged them with the responsibility to serve, not to dominate or exploit, leading with integrity, governing with competence, and serving with humility, principles foundational to the CSG.

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You are leaving with a charge to serve, not to dominate, not to accumulate, not to exploit. You have been trained to lead with integrity, to govern with competence, and to serve with humility.

Bakare further elaborated that leadership is a calling, not merely a career. True leadership, he explained, involves answering the call to serve something greater than oneself, be it the community, the nation, or the generation. He urged the graduates never to forget that the people they lead are not stepping stones to their own success but are the very reason for their service, underscoring the paramount importance of integrity.

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All leaders need to understand that leadership was a calling and not a career. True leadership was about answering the call to serve something larger than yourself, their community, nation and generation.