During an annual program hosted by Poju Oyemade, the founder of Covenant Nation, Kenyan former director of the anti-corruption commission, Prof. Patric Lumumba, expressed his perspective on the African approach to electing leaders. He noted that Nigerians and other Africans have a knack for selecting their leaders.
Furthermore, he pointed out that Africans often elect leaders with questionable ethical backgrounds and then anticipate them to exhibit virtuous qualities akin to Jesus Christ. Prof. Lumumba emphasized that Africans are adept at vocalizing their grievances when their leaders fall short of expectations.
“Africans, for some reason, are attracted to thieves. Africa, for some reason, is attracted to men and women who can’t serve and when they are not served they complain.
“When Africans are told choose you now whom we shall release, Jesus of Nazareth or Barabbas, they say release Barabbas and when he behaves like Barabbas, they say why are you not behaving like Christ,” Prof Lumumba
The Kenyan lawyer further elaborated that the hardships experienced by Africans traced back to a deficiency in democracy. He went on to assert that what the people have are governments marked by ineptitude and corruption, often referred to as “kakistocracies
“Most of Africa is suffering because we do not have democracies. We have kakistocracies and kakistocracy is government by our very worst. This is what we must deal with and this is what we must say. Who do we elect into our public offices?”
The insights shared by Prof. Lumumba draw parallels with recent events in Nigeria, particularly during the presidential election. These events included the contentious interactions between the Independent National Electoral Commission and the citizens, as well as the legal intricacies emphasized by the judiciary in their rulings
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