Nigeria Lacks Courageous Leaders – Gov Ortom

Nigeria, according to Benue Governor Samuel Ortom, lacks brave leaders capable of confronting the country’s many evils.

Nigeria will remain underdeveloped as long as its leaders are unable to speak out against the country’s many ills, according to him.

He spoke at a lecture organized by the Correspondent Chapel of the FCT Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) to mark the 2021 press week in Abuja on “insecurity in Nigeria, Restoring stability, unity, and progress.”

The Governor said that Nigeria is rife with “lily-livered people” posing as national and regional leaders.

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“I have learned from my experience that Nigeria suffers from a critical leadership deficit,” he says. There seems to be a scarcity of brave and courageous leaders who can clearly identify with what is right and tell the country so.

“We have a lot of lily-livered people who masquerade as national and regional leaders in this country but are afraid to speak and advise the Federal Government correctly.

“Many leaders have confided in me that our position on ranching of livestock and Rule of Law to ensure justice, fairness and equity are good, not only for Benue State but for Nigeria as a whole. But they cannot speak publicly to support it.

“Where then are our elder statesmen and women? Where are our political leaders who will speak out loudly instead of whispering in closets on crucial and critical national issues, including an existential challenge such as the herdsmen sack and pogrom of entire villages and communities in Benue State and other parts of the country?”

Kidnapping, according to the Governor, has become another lucrative industry, with strong suspicions of collusion with government officials, adding that “the increase in kidnappings of all types of people across the country is a dangerous trend.”

He urged President Muhammadu Buhari to avoid favoritism and work for the common good of Nigerians.