Ernest Shonekan

Chief Ernest Adegunle Oladeinde Shonekan GCFR (9 May 1936 – 11 January 2022) was a Nigerian lawyer and statesman who served as the interim head of state of Nigeria from 26 August 1993 to 17 November 1993. He was installed as the Abese of Egbaland in 1981. Quotes The task of nation building in an underdeveloped multi-ethnic state has never been easy anywhere in the world. When you consider the fact that Nigeria has had issues with good governance, it will become clear why it has been rather difficult to set Nigeria on the path of greatness. For one reason, the rot went very far, and for too long. The nation has regressed disastrously as a result of years of bad governance. It will take some time to recover lost ground, and move forward on the path of greatness. Institutions have broken down, age-long values have been eroded, and we are lacking in consensus as a nation. Nigeria in short, is not that easy to fix. I agree that Nigeria has had problems of leadership, but that is only a part of the problem. With the kind of rot that we have in Nigeria today, it seems to me that we have also had a problem of followership. But then it is probably a chicken and egg situation. Simply put, which one comes first? When you appreciate the role of leadership in any organization, it becomes difficult not to blame Nigeria's problems on the failure of leadership. When leaders lead by example, followers are bound to fall in line. The level of education of the leader though very important, is not the controlling factor. The more important criteria should be personal character, experience and exposure. Simply put, I do not think that not having a university graduate as the leader has something to do with the quality of leadership in Nigeria. For one reason, the leader has access to the insights of the best brains available even if he/she cannot really do rigorous thinking. It is therefore, more a question of good judgment, and great political will to make a lasting impact. The problem in Nigeria, you will agree with me, is not about lack of ideas for moving the nation forward. Rather the Achilles heels of our national efforts have been our inability to translate laudable ideas into flawlessly implemented policies and laws. Put simply, our problem is lack of the discipline of execution. I have always believed that Nigeria's dream of becoming a great nation will remain a mirage until we return to our traditional values. Values such as honesty, hard work, industry, system of merit as opposed to nepotism, selfishness that seems to pervade our society today must be embraced once again in the overall interest of all of us. External links Category:Politicians from Nigeria Category:Lawyers from Nigeria Category:1936 births Category:2022 deaths