CUB and Dubai Leadership Summit

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The need for good Leadership in either an organization or nation is imperative because a Leader of any organization or nation can be likened to a driver of a vehicle whose duty it is to control the direction that the vehiclegoes. So, a leader of a country could be described as perfect driver who is expected to steer the affairs of his nation towards taken the country to the promise land. However, the Longman dictionary of Contemporary English definesLeader as a person or thing that leads or in advance of others while the same dictionary defines leadership as the qualities necessary in a leader or control or power over a group. Also Professor Duncan Bruce, deputy Chancellor, Commonwealth University Belize, while speaking at a workshop on the conflict and crisis Management in Nigeria’s capital City Abuja in March this year described a leader as “a powerful engine that propels the boat in a stormy sea”. If these definitions of a leader and leadership are in agreement with findings of the social science experts, then one could be right to say that the 6th Dubai Leadership Summit being organized by CommonWealth University Belize, scheduled to hold between December 16 and 19, 2012 came at no better time than now. This is due to various reasons.
There is no gainsaying the fact that, there has been crisis of leadership all over the world particularly within the African Continent. From Johannesburg to Cairo, from Nigeria to Libya, Syria, Mali among others, it is crisis, crisis everywhere.These Crises, according to both Political and Social Science experts, rear their ugly heads as a result of what they called “Leadership failure”. In fact, the administration of a home could collapse if the head of the family do not perform his functions well. To lead a group, the leader should plan adequately and implement his plans to the letter. There could be trouble if a leader makes adequate plans but refuses or fails to implement his own policies.
In Nigeria, for example, the people now see their leaders as total failures. This is because from the local government area councils to the Central government, the businesses are being run as there were no plans.What else do you want to say when a national Budget in a year is not implemented until the third quarter of the year, and then government officials would begin to praising themselves that the Budget for that year has achieved its objectives. Whereas, in a real sense of the word, two third of the said budget would go into private pockets of a very few privileged at the detriment of the poor masses.
As a result of the poor implementation of policies or lack of plans, people will begin to witness various crisis including Unemployment, Poverty, armed robbery and crimes of different kinds, insecurity, terrorism like Boko Haram, Militancy like what obtains in the Niger Delta Region in Nigeria, Odudua’s Peoples’ Congress (OPC) in South West Nigeria, Kidnapping and other vices.
It is therefore necessary for who ever that wants to take the leadership role in a given society should be adequately prepared for the onerous responsibility of a leader. No doubt, leadership is a burden. This is a fact that nobody can run from. From the daily reports one receives, and discussions among the populace in Nigeria, it is quick to know that the people have lost confidence in their leaders.Nigerians now see government or by extention their leaders as bunch of liars. This is because the impact of government is not being felt by the people.
For instance, on a weekly basis, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meets and the result of the meeting is always the announcement of contract awards that run into billions of naira.The most painful thing in this situation is the fact that, the contracts would not be executed for the benefit of the electorate just as the same contract would be captured in the following year’s national budget, may be, at a higher sum.
It is necessary for the organisers of the upcoming 6th Dubai Leadership Summit to make sure that those that are privileged to attend the event were adequately told about the roles they are expected to play towards the development of their society and the responsibility of their position in their societies. Corruption is the bane in Africa, indeed in Nigeria. Corruption has eaten deep into the fabric of Nigerian society. There is political corruption, economic corruption, morally, Nigerians are corrupt, and there is total collapse of values. All these are taking place because there is “leadership failure”. Elections are rigged before the eyes of our leaders and sometimes it is being alleged that, it is the leaders themselves that either instruct or lead the Pack in the electoral malpractices in Nigeria because elections is a do-or-die affair in our land. I want to recapitulate that leadership is not a tea party.
However, Commonwealth University Belize, is known world wide for its academic excellence and participants of this Summit would find it useful especially as the theme for this year’s Summit is “Vision makes the difference in leadership Effectiveness”. Commonwealth University is famous in leadership training just as it has trained many world Leaders in different leadership Courses. This year’s Dubai Leadership Summit will focus on issues like negotiation skills, corporate governance, Gender issues in leadership, Project management for leaders, cultural Diversity and Leadership, Conflict Management Resolution, Security and Emergency Management. Others include Developing and implementing a vision, Ethical issues in governance and Leadership, Delegation and Decision Making for Leaders and E-learning for Academics, Managers and Professionals.
Those that are expected at the Summit include Ministers, governors, chairmen, chief Executives of Corporate organizations, Directors, Deputy Directors, Legislators, Local government Chairmen, Traditional and Religious Leaders. Expectedly, the chancellor of Commonwealth University, Professor Michael Addison will host the Summit while top Management Staff of the Institution like the Deputy Chancellor, Professor Bruce Duncan, Professor David Iornem, the Summit Coordinator, Professor Addison Mark Wokocha, Chairman, Academic Advisory council of the University and Professor Jonathan Zwingina, Chairman, Legislative Programmes of the institution will be in attendance. This a must Summit to attend.

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