Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Mathew Kukah, on Friday, listed the leadership qualities Nigeria’s next president to be elected in 2023 must have in order to stir the ship of the nation aright and move it forward.
Kukah also warned Nigerians against voting based on ethnic, religious, or political sentiments, stressing that they must cast their votes for a candidate with the capability to tackle the various daunting challenges that have been confronting the country for years now.
The Catholic Bishop, who stated this while speaking on an interview programme on Arise TV on Friday, maintained that though each of the major candidates have the qualities to lead the country, it’s imperative for the electorate to see through each of them before making their wise choice.
He said the time had come to discard and the electorate should sieve and interrogate the presidential candidates on their ideology, plans and governance style before making their choice.
Kukah, who recently celebrated his 70th birthday, said, “The people must interrogate their (presidential candidates) ability and capacity to govern by sheer brain and not bribe. The point is that even the whole idea of leadership is often exaggerated because we are confusing political officeholders with leaders.
“It is only in Nigeria that there is so much focus on the centre. Society can only grow when we extend the frontiers of knowledge and opportunities.
“Critical to all of these, we are looking for a president that has the understanding of the complexity of what is wrong with Nigeria. It is not just about people just aspiring without an understanding of the issues.
“My argument is that anybody who aspires to rule Nigeria and we have the opportunity to, we (Nigerians) must redesign the template of confrontation and you (presidential candidate) must be able to confront Nigerians and answer their questions.
“I am not and won’t be surprised if the candidates are moving up and down and convincing us by taking minimalist positions and telling us these and that are what they are going to do.
“I won’t also be surprised if the next president of Nigeria tells us he would tackle insecurity, increase power generation, and what have you.
“The critical question is that aspiring leaders must be subjected to a litmus test by the people. The people must ask questions like since you (presidential candidate) said you want to deal with insecurity, can we get a sense of how you want to do it and achieve success? Can you show us from your background how you will be able to do this?
“Fortunately for us, the frontline candidates have a track record and those track records must be what we must use to project the nature of the choice we have to make.”
The Catholic Bishop charged political actors, particularly the presidential candidates, to listen to the young people, understand their frustrations, and align their agenda toward assuaging their grievances.
He added, “The passion that drove people in 2015 has dissipated. The people have understood they were lied to and we have all seen the consequences of religious manipulations.
“The young people have become aware of this and they are asking the right questions. I encourage the politicians to go to the nooks and crannies of Nigerians to sell their convictions.
“The energy in this coming election is tremendous and I am excited about the energy of the young people and their attention to the country’s election.
“I believe that Nigerians are energised and they have a choice to make. But we must ensure we see through the candidates and choose right to get the desired outcome.”