I was contemplating the calibre of leadership in this country in terms of competence and age and it dawned on me that we are led by a bunch of inept old geezers who want to hold onto power till death do them part.
Over the last four or five decades, we have been held hostage by the same leaders who have taken political centre stage and continue clinging onto power while the younger generation are left holding onto the false hope that their time will come in future. The political landscape is strewn with rusty old men stumbling all over and pretending they still have the legs for the long haul.
I understand there is one or two legislators so old they haven’t seen the floor of the Senate for the last year or two, ostensibly because they are sick but in actual fact, they are suffering from old age. There’s nothing unusual about getting old but when it interferes with your work, retirement should be considered as an option. In decent societies, if you are unable to conduct your duties as a public servant, you do the honourable thing and resign. But here, that would be asking for too much. The men (they are usually men) in power would hear nothing of the sort; they must have their power even when they have no clue what’s happening about them.
The Bible says any years above seventy is regarded as a bonus. Many of our leaders are in the bonus territory yet they remain on the ballot year in year out. In African society, the older generation is expected to hold the hands of the younger generation and pass on the wisdom they have accumulated over the years. The warrior class is mentored by the older clansmen who then take a back seat and let the young men do their thing. But today, the octogenarians still want to go to war, metaphorically speaking.
They still think they have the mojo even when their backs are bent over that they can barely lift a spear live alone engage in warfare. Perhaps I am exaggerating on the age factor but many will bear me witness that we have a bunch of politicians who have been around for eons and who’s main strength is playing the political, nay, the tribal game.
Sometimes, I look at the political scenario and it looks like a game of musical chair. The same faces are doing the rounds, occupying same seats at one time or the other. Today, this person is hurling all manner of insults to their political enemies on the other side of the divide and tomorrow, the same individual completely changes tune and becomes the choirmaster of what some wit referred to as praise and worship. They dine and wine with the same person they were calling all manner of names just the other day.
Well, as much as our leaders are to blame, the average voter however is the real culprit; they are swayed by cheap parochialism and some miserable coins thrown their way. In my opinion, we should be looking at the competence of individuals first before looking at their political orientation. We should not be held hostage by politics at the expense of intellectualism and a few coins. For some reason however, voters vote in parties rather than individuals; you must belong to the right party to sail through, even if you are so ancient you can’t remember your name.
I recently watched a clip doing the rounds comparing Rwanda’s ICT minister and our own: it is quite a contrast. The young lady is knowledgeable on matters ICT and speaks confidently about her role in moving Rwanda on the digital path. Her counterpart here is ranting about ‘misuse’ of the internet which he threatens to shut down if those young fellows ‘misusing’ it don’t stop their nefarious activities forthwith. Well, we get what we deserve, don’t we?
-The writer is a communications consultant
