National chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Adamu, has said that one of the challenges that confront the success of democracy is the choice of leadership.
He said just like the country’s leadership, Nigerians also have critical role to play in in ensuring the entrenchment of the democratic process.
“The success of a democracy is multifaceted; the leadership has its roles and the followers have their roles to play,” Adamu stated.
He spoke yesterday at the party’s national secretariat when he received a delegation of the Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy & Development (Council of the Wise) led by its chairperson and former president of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Adamu Bulkachuwa (rtd).
He stressed the need for a lot of attention to address very fundamental issues that affect the success or failure of the democratic processes.
He said, “Ours is a developing democracy as it is a developing economy and there are certain mistakes we make so much, so often that we have no excuse if we have the right leadership to withstand them.
“The success of a democracy is multifaceted; the leadership has its roles and the followers have their roles to play. One of the challenges that confront the success of democracy is the choice of leadership.
“Why do leaders fail? Where do you get a leader, male or female made of outstanding character of integrity and what have you? And what level of expertise does he require to meet up with the expectations of the people and that will make him enjoy the confidence of the electorate? There must be a meeting point,” he said.
In her remarks, the chairperson of the Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy & Development (Council of the Wise), Bulkachuwa stated that for Nigeria to develop, there must be stable good governance, which could best be put in place through free, fair and transparent elections.
She said, “Let me on behalf of the council appeal to the leadership of party to always abide by the party’s Codes of Conduct and Constitution and to ensure internal democracy: inclusive participation, equity and fairness in the running of your Party.
“We also wish to advice that the leadership should also take steps to compel their members, candidates and officials to fully comply with the electoral laws and guidelines issued by the electoral umpire (INEC), in order to develop a culture of integrity and trust.
“It is also the responsibility of the party to ensure that the Political Campaigns are devoid of rancour hate speech, inflammatory and unguided utterances capable of instigating violence. Nigeria deserves peaceful, transparent 2023 elections.”
