It's sad how people only focus on the one that is loud and obvious. No one is completely evil, and no one is completely good.
I have seen a few governments, and I noticed one thing with people: no matter what a leader does, whether he is doing well or not. Provided that personally, they have not gotten any benefits directly from the person. They will complain and tag the regime “bad.”
Since I grew up knowing about politics in my country, there was never a leader whom people didn't complain about. If this part of the country is not complaining, another part would be complaining.
And honestly, sometimes it's not as if there is anything really wrong with the leader, but because the person is either not from their side (tribe, religion, geopolitical zone) or the person refused to be a puppet in their hands they can say all kinds of terrible things about him/her.
There are bad leaders who lead with oppression, selfishness, and a lack of empathy, and I won't deny it. But sometimes, people's remarks on leaders are not completely honest.
The government in Nigeria, since I grew up, has been like a journey from worse to worse. You will think that you have suffered under a particular government, only to have another one, and then realize that the previous person is preferable.
We have seen so much of a bad government that we no longer complain; instead, we laugh over it.
It has become normal to see politicians promise heaven and earth, only to be handed power and turn into a beast.
If you ask me, I'll tell you that no leader on earth is perfect. No matter their good intentions and kind-heartedness, somehow, you would discover that there is a loophole somewhere in their lives.
However, one president that I cherish so much and always respect is president Good-luck Johnathan (2010-2015)
Although his regime was not all rosy, there was an intense issue of insecurity, particularly the bomb blast from the Boko Haram group.
I am not so much concerned about his achievements in the country. Of course, there were infrastructural developments and different initiatives to alleviate poverty and insecurity. What stood out for me was what he did during the 2015 election.
Good-luck was still the president; he still had ways to manipulate the election to his favor, but when his opponent was declared the winner, he didn't fight or try to rig. He peacefully handed over power to the opponent.
His actions kept me wondering about the kind of heart he has. He took the fame, the power, and his authority as nothing, placing the safety of his people above anything else.
This is something most of his predecessors may not have done, even if the whole citizens would perish.
Most of them would rather do anything possible to rule for eight years before they hand over power to the next person, but President Goodluck was not so.
Most Nigerians kept pleading with him to contest for the presidency again, but he kept declining for reasons best known to him. This is the kind of leader we need, people who are not hungry and desperate for power.
These are the kind of leaders we can call good Shepards, people who are ready to sacrifice anything for their people to stay in peace. I wish we had more leaders like him.
N.B: All Images Were Generated By Gemini AI
