Nigeria’s leadership failure is not a crisis of youth, technology or innovation, but the cumulative outcome of decades of manipulated elections, compromised institutions and neglected leadership development, lawmakers and governance advocates said on Tuesday in Abuja.
The consensus emerged at the public unveiling of Leadership 365, a new book by leadership scholar and development expert Prof. Linus Okorie, where speakers warned that without credible elections and deliberate ethical formation, national renewal would remain elusive.
Leading the discussion, Senator Ikechukwu Obiora said Nigeria’s inability to produce accountable leadership is directly linked to the systematic theft of the electoral process, which has severed the bond between leaders and citizens.
“When leaders rig their way into office, they do not feel accountable to the people,” Obiora said. “Elections are the mechanism through which power belongs to citizens. Once that process is corrupted, governance collapses and corruption thrives.”
He rejected claims that moral decay among young Nigerians is responsible for the country’s troubles, arguing instead that the conduct of political elites has shaped a culture of impunity.
“The moral fabric of the younger generation has been bruised by what they see leaders do,” he said. “You cannot preach integrity to young people when dishonesty is rewarded at the highest levels.”
Obiora traced Nigeria’s leadership deficit to the early post-independence era, noting that entrenched electoral fraud prevented the emergence of competent, visionary and legitimate leaders, weakening state institutions and fuelling insecurity, economic stagnation and social fragmentation.
He cautioned against placing excessive faith in technology as a solution to electoral malpractice, stressing that digital tools are ineffective in the hands of compromised institutions.
“No technology can rescue an election conducted by an institution that lacks independence,” he said, calling for constitutional reforms to guarantee a genuinely autonomous electoral management body free from executive control.
Beyond elections, Obiora emphasised the need for intentional investment in leadership development, insisting that human capacity remains more decisive than artificial intelligence or technological advancement.
“Countries that have transformed did so by investing in people,” he said. “The properly channelled human spirit is the most powerful force for national development.”
Also speaking, Senator Osita Izunasor underscored that leadership is defined by service rather than status, warning that Nigeria’s challenges would persist unless leaders embraced selflessness, ethics and mentorship.
“Leadership is not conferred by title or office,” Izunasor said. “It is service. Selfishness and leadership cannot coexist.”
He called on experienced leaders to deliberately mentor younger Nigerians, describing mentorship as a missing link in rebuilding public ethics and restoring trust in governance.
The author, Prof. Linus Okorie, said Leadership 365 was designed as a practical tool to address declining reading culture and shallow engagement with leadership values. Structured into 365 short chapters, the book offers one leadership competency for daily reflection and application.
“In one year, a reader acquires 365 leadership competencies,” Okorie said. “It is a daily manual for personal growth and ethical leadership.”
He advocated the adoption of the book as a general studies text in secondary schools and universities, arguing that early exposure to leadership thinking could significantly reshape values, character and national culture.
Together, the speakers delivered a unified message: Nigeria’s recovery will not come from rhetoric or technology alone, but from credible elections, strong institutions and the daily practice of ethical, service-driven leadership.
“Until Nigeria fixes its elections and invests deliberately in leadership development,” Obiora concluded, “it cannot fix its future.”
