It is often believed that members of the elite class in Nigeria have betrayed the confidence of the masses and therefore should be blamed for many of the fundamental societal decadence that has festered for a long in our society, and those who hold this view and opinion have every right to do so.
I have observed with concern as the majority of our intellectuals and brightest minds who have gotten to the pinnacle of their respective careers recede into the shadows and only observe happenings in our society from afar, their activities limited within a very restricted circle, their experience, and knowledge only accessible to a lucky few. Their choices no matter how genuine and whether borne out of personal conviction to live in private away from public discussions and conversations within their rights, however with permission I seek the indulgence of all elders of thought to make a case as to why they are needed now more than ever and perhaps with luck I might be able to make them see reason as to why their voices, ideas thoughts and cognate experiences are needed in the public space desperately.
The current reality is a typical scenario whereby less than-optimal individuals who have no business in positions of leadership take the center stage and anoint themselves as messiahs to solve our enormous challenges and problems in the community, more disturbing is that these same individuals do not possess the minimum requisite cognate experience nor academic qualifications have flooded the scene giving rise to a highly disturbing level of mediocrity never witnessed in the history of our great community.
It is a known fact that those who speak the loudest are not always the smartest, and those who churn out opinions consistently are not necessarily the most intellectually superior in the room. A good example is what is obtainable on our various community-based social platforms, where you have distinguished personalities who are current with day-to-day happenings and fully abreast of discussions but never will you see these highly intellectual and sound minds contribute to a plethora of issues and discourse. The likes of Alh. Shehu Abdulrahman, Alh. Ishiaku Ndakotsu, Arc. Salihu Sulaiman, Alh. Mamman Tsoeda, Alh. Suleiman Jiwo and a host of others not mentioned are a few household names whom I grew up admiring based on their impeccable resume and distinguished achievements in their respective fields who easily identify as men of timber and caliber that still have so much to offer to our community in areas of capacity development, leadership deficiency and grooming of future leaders.
I boldly put pen to paper and call on our elites to strongly consider what their lack of active participation in community affairs does to the psyche of upcoming generations who look up to them as the moral compass with which to navigate the difficult road ahead and most importantly the negative consequences which include but are not limited to the breeding of mediocre future leaders, thriving Incompetency, less qualified individuals occupying key positions, etc.
Evil has many facets; betrayal, blackmail, murder, corruption, character assassination, slothfulness, greed, avarice, gluttony, adultery, fornication, and paying back good for evil, etc. Which among the lot is worst? I know the choice will vary from person to person, depending on individual perceptions.
An opportunity for our elites to rise to the occasion as presented itself in the upcoming Local government elections, the tacit silence of the elite might also be construed as a form of evil by the younger generations who mostly look up to them for direction and needed Leadership direction to move Lafiagi Emirate from its present pitiable condition unto el-dorado. It is pertinent that we ensure key positions are occupied by people who possess the necessary experience and capacity regardless of our respective political divide and guarantee the best leadership to steer the affairs of our now decrepit Local Government Structure.
Zubair Mohammed Ali is a Civil Servant and Writes from Ilorin