By Olusegun Olanrewaju
The Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Kukah, said President Bola Tinubu and his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, never prepared for governance before assuming power. The clergyman described the duo as products of an “accidental leadership cycle.”
He emphasised the need for knowledge-based governance, highlighting that many leaders assumed office without being fully prepared for the evolving demands of leadership.
Kukah’s remarks were made during his keynote address at the official commissioning of Start-Rite School’s new building and the 4th Amaka Ndoma-Egba Memorial Lecture in Abuja
Delivering a scathing critique of Nigerian leadership yesterday, Kukah described President Tinubu, his predecessor, Buhari, and other previous heads of state as leaders who found themselves in power by accident.
He said it was evident none of these leaders were fully prepared before assuming office, especially in a world where the demands of leadership are rapidly evolving
The bishop lamented that the fundamental element missing in Nigerian leadership is knowledge.
“If we are to start from the beginning, you will find that almost every leader who came to power in Nigeria did so due to one accident or another,” Kukah stated.
Kukah provided a historical context to his argument, highlighting the accidental nature of leadership transitions in Nigeria’s leadership.
He claimed that President Tinubu, who claimed to be prepared for the role, was struggling to get off the ground.
“Tinubu took over from Buhari, who had already given up. Buhari succeeded Jonathan, who thought he would retire after being deputy governor but was thrust into power by circumstances.
“Jonathan succeeded Yar’Adua, who had planned to return to teaching at Ahmadu Bello University after his governorship. Yar’Adua, in turn, succeeded Obasanjo, who was unexpectedly released from prison to become President,” he said.
Kukah stressed that while the world has changed, leadership expectations have not.
He expressed concern that democracy appears to be malfunctioning under successive administrations despite the nation’s embrace of the democratic principle of ‘one man, one vote.’
