IN my study of liberal democracies across the globe, one critical denominator that runs through is ‘civility in governance’, the hallmark of prosperity and wellbeing of the people. Great nations are built on this tenet, the Chinese realised this long ago that the most potent weapon against enemies is fortified character and not fortified walls. The credible index to gauge civility is how political leaders treat people who are politically vulnerable and people who do not have the apparatus to fight back. Civility is grounded in how people with different political affiliations, social status and economic orientations can live peaceably without the exertion of force or abuse by the government. With civility, governance becomes fairer, well-organised and productive. Government becomes sufficiently emotionally intelligent and open-minded to the yearnings and needs of the people. Without exaggeration, civility has gotten worse in Oyo State in the last ten years. The state has been overfed with caustic menus of the past administrations.
It is glaring that civility-deficit of the past administration was so acute to the detriment of public impact fundamentals throughout the pace-setter State was eventually over-powered by the tremor of ignorance and high-handedness in government shops. The Abiola Ajimobi-led government failed because it lacked civility but relied on the instruments of coercion and verbal assaults against the citizens. In his book Crisis of Civility, a writer, Shaffer, opined that building legitimacy for any government starts with civility. This requires keeping pace with time in co-creating public values. A look at the past will show that Oyo State is just coming out of the backlash of negative media spotlights and total breakdown of civic engagements with the people. The current administration of Governor Seyi Makinde has demonstrated its readiness to smoothen the contours of past errors and engage the people more respectfully, in order to strengthen the bond of social contract.
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In the words of Keith Davis, “Leadership is the ability to persuade others to seek defined objectives enthusiastically.” It is the human factor which binds a group together and motivates it towards shared goals. Leadership is an important function which helps to maximise efficiency and achieve organisational goals. This view was supported by John Wooden who averred that, the most powerful leadership tool is your own personal example. Recall that critical departments of Ajimobi led administration were cloaked in secrecy, process breach and glaring infractions, the most recent manifested in theft of government vehicles. Against this background, Governor Seyi Makinde from the outset, established his intention to keep to his campaign promises, the thrust of which is integrity. The cancellation of school fees for primary and secondary education, his sensitivity to gender equation in appointive offices, his compassion for and inclusion of the physically challenged individuals in his government, the establishment of the due diligence office among others, are enough to reinforce his commitments to positive social change. The well packaged development road map of his administration will obviously have transformative implications on the landscape of the entire South Western States very soon.
With the recent public declaration of his assets, Governor Makinde has not only fired a rocket shot into the camps of his critics, he has equally asserted a tap-rooted moral authority to lead the State. As a leader with good intentions, he has left his dashboard open that character is not optional in government. His desire to advance the practice of public management in Oyo State is commendable and, will in no small measure, engender productive actions, enhance accountability and quality of individuals with regards to shared responsibilities and management of State resources. A significant reason for my enthusiasm and emotional connect with the current regime stems from the Governor’s simple dress sense which resonates candour, service and civility; a radical departure from lavish wardroom indiscipline of the past leaders and government functionaries. I have no doubt that the good people of Oyo State will spare no expense in supporting the new administration to navigate governance from idea to impact.
I strongly believe that the GSM led administration is very sensitive to the issue of legitimacy and will treasure public confidence and the general trusts reposed by all concerned Nigerians, to act competently and, in support of the wider public interests. On a final note, the current government will need to engage stakeholders in policy ideation, discusses and implementations which are crucial to achieving positive public impact. Effective stakeholders’ engagement starts, not only with consultations but also, identifying demographic blocks with specific interest in the policy initiatives being put through. The government must also be willing to spend political capital in supporting policy objectives which will directly influence and elongate its legitimacy.
- Adegbite writes in from Ogbomoso, Oyo State
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