Are the Young ready to lead?

Each time I hear things like the young people should be given a chance to lead, I laugh. I know we still have very good and competent young people that can be agents of transformation but they are in the tiniest minority.

So many are quick to use the arguments of our past leaders attaining positions of leadership at very young ages, true but you must realise that they got there not because of their competency but because they were lucky to be among a few that were a bit enlightened in the wake of transition from the colonial era. There was an immediate need to transfer responsibility of leadership to any indigenous person that had some level of education but not because of their ingenuity. From my judgement, they were average and had not passed the mediocrity mark of which I will say they are the reason for our current predicaments.

If truly they were competent enough, they would have been visionary and futuristic in their policies and programmes. They would have known population would increase hence would have been futuristic in the development of core infrastructure like schools, hospitals, power, transport etcetera. They were dumb, except for a few, but generally they were dumb.

Let's say opportunity came and it favoured them because of the times they existed and the few that went above the norm grabbed those chances but we can't capitalise on that in this modern times to push our yearnings for relevance.

In these days of information, eyes have been opened, we know better, we don't just have the young to compete with but the old who have had plenty experience, failures and some that have gone above the mark to be relevant in their climes. The bar has been raised, to be relevant now as young people, we have to be extraordinary, we have to be exceptional and excellent in our fields. Emotional appeals won't work, leadership is responsibility and to get there, we must show we are responsible.

Majority of Nigerian youths are not ready. If leadership is given to us at this level, we will see worse than what we have already. Is it the fact that a free and fair election cannot be conducted for Union leaders in the Universities without cult and political interference from powers that be or student unionism have been reduced to avenues of quick money making and praise singing for corrupt politicians.

I weep for this generation, we must retrace our steps, if not shut up and allow the old men lead as you are not better than them.

By: Raphael Donanu