Ezekwesili group moves to tackle Nigeria’s leadership crisis

Obiageli Ezekwesili, a former presidential candidate, has advised Nigerians to show more interest in the leadership selection process in the country if the nation must overcome its leadership woes and produce responsive leaders to solve its myriad of problems.

Ezekwesili, also a former minister of education, stated this on Wednesday at the virtual media launch of the School of Politics, Policy and Governance (SPPG), in which she is also the visioner, noting that the school was set up to serve as a massive base and pipeline to produce a new and disruptive thinking political leaders, who would be responsive and serve the interest of Nigerians.

In her address, Alero Otobo, the interim CEO of the SPPG, said that the idea of the school emerged in recognition of the leadership crisis and gap in the continent in recent decades.

“The School of Politics, Policy and Governance is one of the three pillars of the fix politics initiative. The initiative emerged in recognition of the dismay performance of the public leadership in Africa. Africa lags behind other regions of the world in most objectively measured indicators of human and economic development” Otobo said.

Read Also: Lagos still in the lead as Nigeria confirms 1,479 new COVID-19 cases

Anthony Ubani, executive director, #fixpolitics, said that for a country to enjoy a functional democracy and good governance, which are vital for economic development, three triangular pillars of democracy was necessary namely; an empowered and engaged electorate, who know their rights and responsibilities as citizens, a values-based political class and a reformed constitutional, electoral and political environment.

The SPPG programme would be for six months duration, while lectures would be held virtually and conventional. The first set of students who would be granted full scholarships are expected to resume and begin a full academic programme in March.

The school has renowned national and international scholars, such as Doyin Salami, Yinka Anibaba, Mark Hallerberg, Usman Bugaje, and Frank Nweke among others as members of its faculty.

The SPPG is an initiative of Fix Politics. It is a strategic response to the research outcomes of Ezekwesili’s fellowship research at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin, Germany.