A winding route to power

MJ Balogun’s 246-page treatise temptingly called “The Route to Power in Nigeria” might have been it (with that title, why not?). What this wonderfully packaged book managed to prove in the end is that there really is no “straight and narrow path” to power in Nigeria. After all, this is a country where systems that […]

MJ Balogun’s 246-page treatise temptingly called “The Route to Power in Nigeria” might have been it (with that title, why not?). What this wonderfully packaged book managed to prove in the end is that there really is no “straight and narrow path” to power in Nigeria. After all, this is a country where systems that have had great successes elsewhere have inexplicably failed.

The Nigerian has a unique mindset and a unique cultural and social matrix and this is eventually what Balogun amply demonstrates in his book. He does not, as Robert Greene did in his 48 Laws of Power, point out exact principles that could lead to power in Nigeria. Rather, he engages the reader in a political discourse about leadership and its many failures over the years (going as far back as the pre-independence era).

Readers may find his views objective. His thoughts about the highly revered nationalist leaders are illuminating. They, like many other nationalist leaders elsewhere in the world, failed in the sense that their visions ended at independence and they had no clear idea of what to do after that.

The fact that they relegated themselves to sectional leaders is quite unfortunate and demonstrates the failures of leadership vision. The author’s example of Awolowo, who is undeniably intelligent and visionary but could not spread his vision beyond his region and become a national leader, in the true sense of the word, vividly demonstrates the point.

Balogun’s scope is sweeping. His take on leadership and institutions of governance (for whatever reason the author prefers the term ‘governorship’) is particularly in-depth. The culture of building shallow-foundation institutions – which are easily swept away by succeeding governments, is brought into sharp relief. This culture of constantly and persistently wiping the slate clean has robbed succeeding  leaders of opportunities to advance and instead ensnares them in the quagmire of laying foundations that would most likely be swept away when they themselves leave office.

Perhaps because of Nigeria’s complex composition, Balogun delves deeply into the intricate and fluid factors that have thrown up different kinds of leaders in Nigeria. The socio-cultural notions of various regions(broadly speaking) are incisively discussed in a manner that would enlighten leaders and aspiring leaders who do not have the slightest grasp of what determines how  peoples from other parts of the country behave the way they do. And understanding these factors by leaders will certainly go a long way in equipping them to deal with Nigeria’s many complexities.

In doing this, Balogun also manages to demystify the ethnic blocks that, as we have learnt recently, are not quite as politically formidable as had been previously thought. Religions, tribes and cultures are discussed with the ease of an anthropologists and the insight of a political scientist and at the end, some of the summations are quite impressive.

“The problem with Nigeria is not in leadership but in the persistent but naive inflation of the importance of personalities relative to the paramountcy of values and institutions,” he writes.

Those looking for a clear-cut practical approach to power in Nigeria will be disappointed, those looking to build their leadership capacity (and discover how not to fail in leadership) will find this book strewn with nuggets of wisdom like blossoms on a hillside.

The book is carefully edited and well packaged (which is what you get when your book is printed abroad) but for some inexplicable reason, this book, on page 45, declares that General Sani Abacha died in 1997 (a full year ahead of his actual death).

Some readers may find the author’s rambling approach a bit disconcerting but frankly, that doesn’t stop this treatise from being engaging, incisive and quite a gold mine for students of politics, politicians, leaders and aspiring leaders as well as those who simply want to have a better grasp of things.