Governor Seyi Makinde’s Lecture at the Convocation Ceremony of Precious Cornerstone University, Ibadan

Being the Lecture Titled Faith, Leadership and Governance: Preparing the Next Generation for Ethical Leadership in Nigeria Delivered by His Excellency Seyi Makinde, Executive Governor of Oyo State at the Convocation Ceremony of the Legacy Set (Class of 2024) of the Precious Cornerstone University, Ibadan on Monday 12 November 2024

Let me start this lecture by conducting a brief survey. I will ask a question and you can answer by putting up your hand up. Are you ready? Here comes the question: How many of you want to become leaders when you leave school? Let me see your hands up if you want to be a leader.

Alright put your hands down.

Now, how many of you want to become political leaders?

I am sure if I go round and start asking each of the people that raised their hands earlier, why they do not want to take on political leadership in Nigeria, they will have different answers. But one of the answers most will give will be around the unethical behaviour of Nigerian politicians in general. Since this is a faith-based school, people do not want to “stain their white.”

But therein lies the problem. The less good people are wiling to work in political leadership and governance, the more unethical people continue to thrive.

So today, I will be speaking to you about Faith, Leadership and Governance: Preparing the Next Generation for Ethical Leadership in Nigeria.

Throughout history, God has used political leadership to carry out his purpose. In fact, Paul the Apostle said there is no authority except by God and he said Christians should pray for those in authority. We also have examples of God going against leaders, especially when they work against his people or are proud. Maybe you have read about how God struck Herod Agrippa of Rome. I will paraphrase Acts chapter 12 verses 22-23:

Herod was dressed in nice clothing and went out to speak to the people. Apparently, he spoke so well that the people started shouting, “It is the voice of a god and not of a man!” The proud Agrippa did not stop them. He did not give God the glory. Instead, he permitted himself to be worshipped. For him it was instant judgement. An angel of the Lord struck him down, he was eaten by worms and died five days later.

We are going to take Herod Agrippa’s example to illustrate what unethical leadership from the standpoint of God is and see what lessons you can learn from it as you prepare to be leaders of tomorrow. I will be isolating two closely related qualities that as leaders of tomorrow you must run away from if you are to have the favour of God and man.

But first, let us define ethical leadership. Ethical leadership is the practice of guiding others with integrity, transparency, fairness, and a commitment to doing what is morally right, even when faced with difficult choices.

In Herod Agrippa’s example, the right thing to do was to give God glory. But he did not do it. Why? This brings us back to the qualities which you must avoid as future leaders.

Herod Agrippa was pompous. 

A historian, Jospehus tells us that for this occasion, Herod was dressed in a garment made of silver. The silver of his garment being illuminated by the fresh reflection of the sun’s rays upon it, shone out after a surprising manner. It was because of how he looked in this outfit that made his flatterers call him a god and because he was pompous, he accepted it.

Ethical leaders are not proud. So, to be a good leader, you must be humble and teachable and avoid anything that contributes to pride. One of them clearly highlighted in this story is surrounding oneself with flatterers and sycophants.

Herod Agrippa should have rebuked the people and told them not to call him a god. And we see what happened when he listened to flatterers. We may not face instant judgement like Herod did for accepting undue flattery and sycophancy, but history is full of examples of how things go really badly in nations where the leaders listen to sycophants.

Great leaders surround themselves with people who can tell them the truth. So now is a good time to start practicing that. Choose quality friends and mentors. You need to decide the kind of leader you want to be and then look around you for good examples of such leadership. And imitate their ways and actions.

Also, while surrounding yourself with good people, you should learn to listen to good advice. It is one thing to have good advisers, but it is another to listen to such advisers. That is why ethical leaders inspire trust, foster respect, and hold themselves accountable to both their values and the people they lead.

If you look at the leadership in Nigeria, you will clearly understand why we need your generation to be the change. We have few leaders that inspire trust. In fact, over the years, trust has depreciated so badly, that we are suffering a huge deficit. We have few leaders that are transparent and honest and who hold themselves accountable to these values.

We have few leaders that show true empathy for the people they are leading.  We have had two extremes in recent times: Some have allowed misplaced empathy to stop them from making tough decisions that will make the economic lives of people better. Others have shown a lack of empathy and so they pursue policies that cause the people so much pain. Then they tell you, “Let us suffer now for a better tomorrow.”

Ethical leaders know what true empathy means. They know it is about responsibility towards the broader community. That is why in Oyo State, we say it is about putting the people first. Of course, as humans, we make mistakes, this is why ethical leaders have multiple layers of checks. As mentioned, they surround themselves with good advisers, they listen to these good advisers. In a situation where they choose not to listen to advisers, because as imperfect people their moral compass fails, they must listen to the people they serve and ultimately do what is best for them.

So, what have we learnt from this lecture.

We have used the example of Herod Agrippa to show what ethical leadership is. It is devoid of pride. It requires surrounding oneself with good advisers and listening to such advice.

It means understanding real empathy and applying empathy to decision making.

In this way, ethical leaders build trust.

Today is your convocation, legacy class of 2024. As you embark on a new journey outside of this faith-based institution, look around you and find the right examples of leadership to follow and as the Bible says, when you walk with the wise, you will become wise.

Thank you and God bless you.

Seyi Makinde

11 November 2024