Who can fix this country?

The Presidential Election is turning into yet another wild game, with nail-biting competition between the contestants amidst the usual crossover drama and mudslinging. We see several aspiring political leaders but sadly many of them lack some of the most vital leadership qualities. 

Leadership in the political arena requires a focus on the long-term good of a country, over and above any short-term personal gain. Effective political leadership requires a combination of charisma and integrity complemented by the ability to assess a situation and make a decision that is best for the country and its people. In a nutshell, a political leader should be a statesman armed with the integrity and willingness to stand up for what is right, even if it means losing a post or an election.

Unfortunately, the political culture of the country has been deteriorating over the last few decades with rampant corruption becoming almost synonymous with the political system. The system has created a bunch of party slaves who will stand by their party irrespective of what it does. Politics has become a domain that is ill-suited for decent, educated and patriotic professionals and hence voters have been compelled to pick the best of the worse rather than those who possess what it takes to deliver expectations. 

In the end, a nation blessed with all the resources necessary to be self-sufficient and stand out from the rest of the world has become a dumping ground afflicted with acute dependency syndrome.

However, the good news is that there seems to be increasing interest among citizens to actively engage in matters of national importance. The younger generation and professionals show greater interest in disrupting the pre-existing stinking political system which also puts great pressure on the traditional slave-minded masses to wake up from their political torpor. 

As the competition grows intense, political campaigns intensify as well. These campaigns are targeted at different segments of the vote base and what is logical among the educated may not necessarily sound convincing to the masses at the grassroots level and vice versa. In the end, every voter, whether he is an intellectual or layman, has the same single vote and this is where traditional politicians have been able to fool the vulnerable masses to secure their seats.

It is extremely important that voters evaluate the leadership qualities of the candidate as the primary consideration in ascertaining his or her suitability for the position, irrespective of the party or people backing him or her. Napoleon Bonaparte famously said: “If you build an army of 100 lions and their leader is a dog, in any fight, the lions will die like a dog. But if you build an army of 100 dogs and their leader is a lion, all dogs will fight like a lion.” Therefore, this is about selecting the right leader and hence the primary focus should be on the individual. 

Given this backdrop, I, as a responsible and patriotic professional, thought of shedding some light on a few areas to enable better decision-making by the voters. Imagine you are the owner of a business and need to hire a Chief Executive Officer for the entity. What would be your considerations? You would first need to understand the context, current status and expected future of your organisation, after which you would determine the scope of the job along with the CEO’s expected deliverables. This will allow you to define the desired profile of the candidate who could deliver the expected results in the given circumstances. Unfortunately, we do not see such a robust recruitment process taking place when selecting the country’s first citizen, who will be responsible for the fate of the entire nation. Therefore, let me discuss a few aspects to be considered in the process.

 

Get the game right

What is at hand is a Presidential Election in which an individual will be selected by the citizens as the leader of this country. The candidate may be backed by certain parties or groups of people, but in the end he or she will be the leader of every citizen and not just the party he or she represents. 

Although there is currently a dilution of powers vested with the President pursuant to the passage of the 19th Amendment, the individual elected will still be an Executive President with a reasonable amount of power and will be the first person who provides leadership to the entire nation. As such, it is extremely important that voters evaluate the leadership qualities of the candidate as the primary consideration in ascertaining his or her suitability for the position, irrespective of the party or people backing him or her. Napoleon Bonaparte famously said: “If you build an army of 100 lions and their leader is a dog, in any fight, the lions will die like a dog. But if you build an army of 100 dogs and their leader is a lion, all dogs will fight like a lion.” Therefore, this is about selecting the right leader and hence the primary focus should be on the individual. 

If people have reservations about the parties, the same can be addressed at the forthcoming Parliamentary Election, in which case the focus is on the team which can run the Government, under the leadership of the President.

Get the profile right

According to the Constitution, “There shall be a President of the Republic of Sri Lanka, who is the Head of the State, the Head of the Executive and of the Government, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.” This provides a high-level framework to determine the personality traits and qualifications of the President. 

As the Head of State, the candidate should possess the personality to serve as the symbolic leader of the country and represent the nation as its face. As the Head of the Executive and Government, the President must be charismatic and equipped with strong leadership qualities to take charge and make things happen, among other responsibilities. Under this, he or she is also vested with the power to make key appointments, including diplomats, and hence his or her philosophy of selecting the people to those positions plays a major role in ensuring the effectiveness of those high-profile positions. The next role of the President as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces requires him or her to be able to provide leadership to the Armed Forces with uncompromising commitment to ensure national security at the highest level. Accordingly, voters must evaluate the profiles of the candidates and ascertain their ability to uphold these non-negotiable roles, before considering other aspects.  

Get the context right

Sri Lanka has been going through a series of catastrophes since independence which include both natural disasters like the tsunami and man-made disasters like the 30-year civil war. In the middle of these, the economic landscape of the country has been heavily disturbed due to internal muddles coupled with vulnerabilities in the external environment. After a tremendous effort, the Armed Forces were able to end the 30-year-old civil war, which was considered the largest impediment to the country’s growth. Although the country witnessed an upsurge in economic activity following the war victory, this momentum was not continued owing to political turbulence. On the other hand, the country’s external debts have been rising to staggering levels, while macroeconomic variables witnessed a severe deterioration. The situation has gotten even worse as the misery spreads to the sociocultural environment, upsetting ethnic harmony and eventually affecting national security through the Easter attack. 

One must understand that when all your fundamentals are disturbed, it’s not a question of just moving forward and making things better. It’s about taking charge of the situation and relentlessly working on reinstating national security, stabilising the economy, strengthening ethnic harmony, building confidence among external stakeholders and regaining growth momentum while cleaning the mess, all at once.

Given this backdrop, the country desperately needs a transformational leader who has the capacity and vision to revolutionise the country, instead of a transactional leader who will perform within a given structure or a servant leader whose priority is to serve his people and attempt to make their lives better. 

The idea is not to undermine great leadership styles such as the servant leader but to emphasise the importance of addressing more serious matters first given the circumstances. In other words, an aspiring leader should not be a Nero who merrily plays a fiddle while Rome burns.

Get priorities right

As mentioned above, the country is now at a critical juncture with multiple challenges on many fronts. In a situation of this nature, the leader must be able to figure out the right priorities and address first things first. Nothing is more important than the national security and sovereignty of the country, which are non-negotiable under any circumstances. 

The second priority is to recoup economic fundamentals via a vigorous revival strategy with specific attention paid to the external debt burden. 

Foreign policy, tax reform, youth empowerment, national digital strategy, promotion of ethnic and religious harmony and environmental conservation will be key enablers in materialising economic and social goals. The candidates may offer short-term relief packages (painkillers) and welfare proposals to stimulate voters who have become necessary - bribes in the process owing to the political culture that has evolved over the years. However, one must understand the importance of ‘curative medicine’ for problems over short-term ‘painkillers’ and evaluate the manifestos of the candidates accordingly. 

As such, it’s important that citizens make an assessment of the aspiring leaders’ ability to get their priorities straight and show commitment towards delivering results. The leader’s openness to listen to experts or intellectuals and the availability of a pool of competent experts or intellectuals around the leader to provide appropriate advice at the right time must also be a consideration in evaluating the candidates. 

Get the roles right 

The traditional practice of citizens is to appoint politicians to respective positions and then expect them to solve all problems. However, in many cases the citizens are directly or indirectly connected to the problem. As such, it is important for citizens to realise that politicians alone cannot fix this country without their support. 

When we as citizens blame the political leadership for not delivering, we must not forget that it’s us who put them there. When we blame politicians for being corrupt or promoting corruption, we must not forget that they cannot do anything alone without the support of officers, professionals and citizens. When we hate politicians for abusing their power or behaving like monsters, we must not forget that it’s we who have made them what they are. When professionals and intellectuals blame politicians for being irrational or citizens being stupid, they must not forget that their ignorance and betrayal of professionalism have caused the same. When we condemn the rotten political culture, we must not forget that it’s part of the national culture and if we want to see a change in political culture, we must strive to change the national culture that promotes the so-called political culture. 

Leaders are there to offer direction, create context and provide resources. Citizens must do their part to make things happen. The discipline of citizens is the foundation for the progress of any nation, which is clearly evident among nations that have achieved excellence. Professionals and intellectuals must stand firm for what is right for the country and its citizens without compromising their professionalism. They have a bigger role to play in educating the masses and guiding them to differentiate right from wrong and genuine from fake.

Final thoughts

In the end, it is about the collective effort of the political leadership, professionals, intellectuals and citizens working together as one force in the best interests of the country. So, the starting point is to select the right person to lead the nation. After evaluating the personality traits of the candidates, voters can make an assessment on the aptness of the proposed policies and strategies in the circumstances as the candidates have already published their manifestos. It is also important to distinguish between those who walk the talk and those who talk the talk based on their personality and historical performance and the practicality of their proposals in light of ground realities.

This is not a vote to secure a job, to gain a relief package, to win a Government tender, to help a political friend or to carry forward the family’s political slavery, but a decision that will determine the fate of this nation and the future of its children. I hope citizens will place the country above all else while making their decision and continue to engage in a nation-building process irrespective of who wins.

(The writer is a Chartered Accountant, Management Consultant, International Speaker, Leadership Coach and Corporate Trainer. He can be reached via [email protected] or [email protected])