ABUJA, Nigeria – The Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Kukah, has said that President Bola Tinubu and his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari never prepared for governance before assuming power.
The cleric described the duo as products of an “accidental leadership cycle.”
While delivering a keynote address during the commissioning of the new Start-Rite School building and the 4th Amaka Ndoma-Egba Memorial Lecture in Abuja, Bishop Kukah highlighted a recurring pattern of unpreparedness among the country’s leaders, reports Nigerian Tribune.
According to him, “if we look at Nigeria’s leadership journey, you will find that almost every leader who came to power did so by accident.
“President Tinubu, despite claiming to be prepared for the role, is clearly struggling. We are still trying to find our footing. He took over from Buhari, who had already disengaged from governance.
“Buhari succeeded Jonathan, a man who never envisioned himself as president but was thrust into leadership due to circumstances. Jonathan took over from Yar’Adua, who planned to return to teaching after his governorship.
“Yar’Adua succeeded Obasanjo, who was unexpectedly released from prison to become president. Before that, Obasanjo replaced Abacha, who was poised to rule indefinitely until nature intervened. Abacha followed Shonekan, a business executive abruptly drafted to lead the country. The cycle is evident, and the missing link in all of this is knowledge and preparation.”
The Catholic Archbishop further argued that while Nigeria has embraced democratic principles like, its democratic process has repeatedly failed to deliver competent leadership.
Also speaking at the event, the Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd) highlighted the need to imbibe leadership qualities early in life.
He likened many of Nigeria’s challenges to failures in leadership and accountability.
The NDLEA boss also pointed out disturbing trends within the drug trade, revealing the involvement of visually impaired individuals in trafficking illicit substances.
“Recently, the NDLEA uncovered a cartel involving visually impaired individuals. We arrested a blind man transporting a large consignment of cannabis from Lagos to Kano.
“During interrogation, he claimed he didn’t know the package’s contents and provided the name of another blind individual in Lagos. This led us to another blind man, and eventually, we traced the ultimate handler, who was also blind,” he noted.
Founded in 2008 with just seven pupils, Start-Rite School has grown into a leading institution in Abuja, now serving over 800 students across nursery, primary, and secondary levels.
