On leadership crises in Nigeria:
Reflections on the ancient Nri Kingdom and leadership qualities (3)
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Part III of III
The marvel Of Nri Civilization:
If one were looking for great pyramids or huge marble temples, one would not find any at Nri. Monuments or technology is not the marvel of Nri civilization. The marvel of Nri civilization lies in its moral character, and specifically the level of restraint it placed on itself in order to avoid abuse of its powers. According to history, around the ninth century AD (or even earlier) Nri emerged as the first civilization in the area. They discovered bronze and were a very organized culture. They were intelligent and ambitious. Why did they not expand their kingdom? How were they able to subdue that natural human impulse to take advantage of their neighbors simply because they could. To really understand and appreciate what the level of restraint that Nri displayed means, we have only to look at how many other civilizations treated there neighbors over human history.
A civilization emerges because they have discovered a secret or gained an insight or some power that its neighbors do not have. Enabled by this new advantage, they tend to look down on their poor neighbors, whom were not favored by the Gods. This attitude often leads to conquest and is usually followed by occupation (or annexation or assimilation) and taxation. The proceeds, including slaves taken, are then used to build cities that dazzle the rest of the world. Power does intoxicate, but somehow the Nri kingdom managed to contain itself.
Certainly they were ambitious. This is evident in the way they named their priests. They called the junior priests ‘Nze’ (shield or protector or guardian or shepherd). They called the senior priests ‘Ozo,’ meaning a Saver or Savior. However, we know by their actions that their ambitions were not self-serving. They set out to save or protect not only Nri, but their neighbors and perhaps the world as well.
I believe that the heart of a human being can be tested under two extreme condition; absolute power, and absolute abjection. The Nri kingdom was tested under both of these conditions and they held their own. As far back as the 9th century, the Nri did not have absolute power, but they were close. According to history, Nri exclusively had bronze in West Africa for three centuries before any other. Just the sight of 100 well fed men with bronze swords would have caused a village to fall on their knees. Nri instead used bronze to make peace ritual objects. They used their unique position to nurture and inspire confidence in their neighbors, instead of fear.
Nri Kingdom was also tested at the other extreme. They lost most of the power they had between the 17th and 19th centuries when the British Administration came to the area. Because the British Administration brought guns and took slaves when they came to the area, Nri did not co-operate with them. As a result, the British banned their activities and used other minority groups in the area to manage Nri. Nri was written out Nigerian history by British scholars and their sons and daughters were fair game to slave hunting. If Nri had participated in the British administration’s scheme, their citizens would probably have been shielded from slavery and would likely have been given their proper place in Nigerian history today.
How did they muster the will to do the right things and set good leadership examples under such difficult circumstances? This is the question Nigerians and the world should ponder very often. The restraint that Nri displayed is the heart and soul of peace everywhere, and the lack of it is the first ingredient for trouble anywhere.
During his June, 20th 2004 60 Minutes interview, former US president, Bill Clinton blamed his personal problems on lack of restraint. According to the report, (32) Mr. Clinton says he committed adultery for the worst possible reason: “Just because I could.”’ But, in the middle of this uncomfortable interview, Mr. Clinton also rose to the occasion and made what I think is the most profound moral statements I have heard in the 21st century. He went on to say that “…I think that’s just about the most morally indefensible reason that anybody could have for doing anything—when you do something just because you could.” Unfortunately, Mr. Clinton, the philosopher, the genius and one of my heroes was reflecting on his own lack of restraint. However, given the events of the time, one wonders if Mr. Clinton, the clever politician, was also using his personal problems to reflect on a greater one—that of lack of restraint in rushing to war. Or better yet, was Mr. Clinton speaking to current Nigerian leaders?
*****
The ancient Nri civilization did not know Jesus or St Paul or St Peter or other biblical heroes. They did not know our modern heroes like George Washington or John F. Kennedy or Martin Luther King Jr. or Nelson Mandela or Mother Theresa or St Francis of Assisi or Mahatma Gandhi. Nevertheless, their breath and footprints resemble that of these monumental pioneers. Just like the heroes mentioned above, the Nri simply developed a strong un-wavering spirit of giving. I think that in the subject of leadership, everything good comes from the mindset (spirit) of giving and everything ill stems from the mindset (spirit) of taking. This spirit of taking leads to all sorts of abuse, including escalation of violence, exploitation. The colonial administration that consolidated different tribes and cultures and called it Nigeria came to the area with this spirit of taking. When they left, Nigerians (and most of their colonies in Africa) adopted this culture. That is why today some of our learned journalists and politicians use terms like ‘National Cake’ to describe Nigerian economy. They are yet to tell us who is baking the cake! That is why when Nigerians (including current generation descendants of Nri) travel to other parts of the world today, we travel not to give (nurture) like our ancestors did, but to take.
Do we not have something to give anymore? Do we avoid telling the world what our ancestors did because they would then expect the same from us? I would imagine that if those ancient Nri Warriors were to come back to life today that they would be the first to arrive at the scene of every conflict around the world and try to contain it. I meet Americans all the time who say that they are planning to or have been to a Peace Corps mission at one remote African village or another. This includes many African Americans. If they have not gone or are not planning to go, they must surely have a distant uncle, aunt, cousin or even friend who has been. However, I am yet to see a Nigerian living in the United States who has been to one or is planning to go to one. Yet we ride bigger cars, live in nicer homes, and throw bigger parties than most of these people. It is from this culture of taking that Nigerian Leaders emerge. How can we expect them to behave otherwise?
Nigerians cannot say that we do not have heroes of our own because we do. We have heroes like Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu and Chief Gani Fawehinmi. These are individuals who risk their lives every day, giving up their liberty and safety so that the rest of us may have what they are giving up—liberty. These two individuals and a handful of the others have giving to us generously. Sometimes I find myself wondering what Odumegwu-Ojukwu does for a living besides his human rights activism. I know that he inherited some wealth from his millionaire father, but those things can run out if one does not take time to invest them. I wonder sometimes what sorts of incentives those who fleece Nigeria to buy him over may have offered to Odumegwu-Ojukwu. I often wonder what his personal security team must be costing him per month and who is paying for it. Sometimes I wonder why former Governor Chris Ngige did what he did in Anambra State to break the exploitation spell. I wonder a lot. And I find myself wondering why Chief Gani Fawehinmi has risked his life over and over again to steer Nigeria in the right path.
We do have a few heroes and leaders in Nigeria today, but we choose not to acknowledge them just as we chose not to acknowledge the ‘Nri Warriors of Peace’ and the example they set for us. That is why anyone in their right mind in Nigeria would vote for any other person when the likes of Chief Gani Fawehinmi and Dim Odumegwu-Ojukwu, who have proven their characters over and over again are on the ballot. We have individuals who strive to inspire and lead us. They work very hard to impress us, but leadership is not a one way traffic and therefore we must strive to meet them halfway. We as followers must let ourselves be led by them.
Just like the few individuals mentioned above, the Nri civilization were not the only culture who did what they did in the world. I am sure that there are other uncelebrated heroic cultures who promoted peace and strong leadership characters in their regions throughout history. Those deeds however are not celebrated in history books. Most of the time people who mean us good do not draw attention. They do not blow their own horn or draw the spotlight on themselves because they work for a higher purpose. Because of this, most of the time they are often overlooked and neglected and their deeds even denied. It is therefore up to us, good citizens to genuinely seek them out and draw attention to them. We are not doing it for them. We are doing it for us—current and future generations. When we seek them out and prop them up, they become a reference point to inspire new heroes—heroes of our time and heroes of the future generations.
See also:
*****
Chikodi Ańunobi: On leadership crises in Nigeria: Reflections on the ancient Nri Kingdom and leadership qualities (1)
Chikodi Ańunobi: On leadership crises in Nigeria: Reflections on the ancient Nri Kingdom and leadership qualities (2)
Chikodi Ańunobi: On leadership crises in Nigeria: Reflections on the ancient Nri Kingdom and leadership qualities (3)
*****
Chikodi Ańunobi is the author of Nri Warriors of Peace, a historical novel about 11th century Nri Kingdom. Nri Warriors of Peace won the Best Books 2006 Book Awards in the ‘Fiction & Literature: Multicultural’ and ‘African American Fiction’ categories. Ańunobi is a descendant of Nri from Enugwu-Ukwu Nri in Anambra State, Southeastern Nigeria. He lives and works in Washington USA as a Software QA Engineer. Ańunobi can be reached at ChikodiAńunobi@yahoo.com.
*****
References/Citations:
31. Henry P. Sims Jr. and Peter Lorenzi, The New Leadership Paradigm (Sage Publications, 1991)
32. 60 Minutes, Bill Clinton: His Life (60 Minutes interview, June, 20th 2004)