CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The interplay of leadership, governance, nation building and development administration is elaborate and inseparable. This is due to the fact that the context of leadership, both in theory and in practical, the effects of governance shows on national growth procedures. Warren Bennis, a prominent authority on leadership, once mentioned that ‘leadership is like beauty: it is difficult to specify, however you understand it when you see it.' That might not be further from the reality. The study is concerned with the relationship between development administrations on the one hand and administrative development on the other. It tries to discover the ideas of public administration and management in the national growth context, leadership function, leadership culture in Nigeria context and difficulties of leadership in modern Nigeria by a close evaluation of the institution of political leadership.
In accordance with Abdulsalam (2007), the interests of Riggs and Pye in the connection between nationwide development administration and the environmental forces, particularly those that represented by the economic sector stakeholders and the social values respectively, Katz accentuate the technical demands for efficient development administration, such as finance, manpower, information, logistics, and various other relevant variables. Obiozor (2015) opines that Nigeria is a country birthed in optimism in 1960 at independence however has its 57-year lived in a state of uncertainty and unpredictability. Within those years as well, all type of evaluation and conclusions have been put together on crucial problems responsible for what has ended up being a Nigerian dilemma over nation building and national development. This is due to the fact that all nations compared with Nigeria in 1960 have made huge progress, developed reasonably stable political and economic systems. When compared with third world nations in the 1960s, such as nations in Asia like Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea. In an interval of thirty years, the latter ended up being the Asian Tigers.
He explained more that while the former are immersed in seasonal violent wars, armed conflicts and little scale insurgencies, cross-border terrorism, unrelenting economic situations, financial corruption, famine, diseases and hardship, political instability, among others, which have come to be emblems of the African continent. What made the distinction? In the light of the dilemma, this study tries to take a look at how leadership and good governance have connected and the effects of their connections on nation building within the Nigerian context (Obiozor, 2015).
There is no doubt that there are crisis in the nation, they consist of all the crisis of political, social and economic development identified by Olugbade (1987) in Lucan Pye. Efforts at dealing with the dilemma have been utter failure since the problems have not been dealt with instead we have been busy chasing after the shadow. Among Nigeria's fault lines was for long time attributed to leadership failures and others were defective political and economic structures. Ele (2013) opines that there is often presumed the collapse of state structures, whether through defeat by an external power or as a result of internal mayhem, leads to a vacuum of political power. This is seldom the situation. The mechanisms whereby political power are exercised might be much less formalised or constant, however fundamental concerns of how best to guarantee the physical and economic security of oneself and one's dependants do not just vanish when the institutions of the state break down. Non-state actors in such circumstances might exercise differing levels of political power over local populations, sometimes offering fundamental social solutions from education to healthcare. Also where non-state actors exist as parasites on local populations, political life goes on.
Unfortunately, in Nigeria today, a lot of the leaders have had the tendency to plunder, defraud, embezzle, mismanage and at the same time envy one another with impunity and relish, (Bamidele 2012). He went further to reveal that the leaders have likewise been possessive, egoistic, self-centered, individualistic, callous, greedy and deceptive. The leaders and their regimes/administrations/governments were deeply engrossed in excessive acts of corruption, impropriety, mismanagement and squanderism. Hence, this study seeks to examine the effect of good leadership and administration in nation building.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Since the achievement of independence in 1960, Nigeria has been battling with the issues of nation building. These issues have been the inability of Nigerians to raise a genuine leader whose dedication to the efficient advancement of the nation would certainly be patriotic and nationalistic. The succeeding governments since independence have been characterized by imperfections, consequently making good governance an illusion. Throughout the civilian and military regimes in Nigeria, the majority of the leaders have been unable to come up with programs and efficient plans that ought to be advantageous to the Nigerian nation. The majority of these leaders have been after selfish gains and thus accumulate riches for themselves.
It is axiomatic that the high quality of leadership in a nation impacts the degree of development. Poor leadership and bad governance can yield to political instability and underdevelopment. Nigeria is honored with a wealth of mineral resources and a vast land. It is not a daydream to anticipate Nigeria to soar high like the widely known economic titans of the global north, however still, Nigeria wallows in socio-economic, political and infrastructural decadence and sluggishness. To this end, it comes to be a point of concern for one to start to picture how Nigeria will ever rise from decadence and her impoverished state being that those that are meant to steer the wheels of the nation to the country emancipation and prosperity, lack the sanity and morality to do so.
1.3 Objective of the Study
This study is designed to explore the effect of good leadership and administration in nation building. Specifically, the following form the basis of this research study:
i) To determine the positive impacts of leadership and governance to nation building.
ii) To explore the importance of leadership in nation building.
iii) To understand the challenges facing leadership and nation-building in Nigeria.
1.4 Research Questions
The followings were specifically designed to be the research questions for this study:
i) What are the positive impacts of leadership and governance to nation building?
ii) What is the importance of leadership in nation building?
iii) What are the challenges facing leadership and nation-building in Nigeria?
1.5 Research Hypothesis
Ho1: There is no significant impact of good leadership on economic development of Nigeria.
1.6 Significance of the Study
This research work is of great relevance to the society at large. This is applicable to the government, the readers of this research work and to the researcher. “A problem shared they say is a problem half solved”.
This study will be beneficial to the government in the sense that, the weak-points and shortcomings of all the sectors of the nation would be pinpointed and displayed based on findings, thus proffering reliable solutions and measures to be taken, so as to attain the lofty height of good administration and national development.
The benefit of this research work to the readers is that hopefully at the time they are done with the reading of the work, they will be upgraded intellectually and also will be highly informed of the up and doings of the current administration, including the weaknesses, strengths, success and achievement of both the past and present administration.
Knowledge they say is power. Hence, this research work will serve as an eye opener, which will give the readers insight on how to participate and also partake in the political affairs of the country geared towards the achievement of national development.
Finally, this research work will to a large extent, widen my scope of knowledge, especially in my course of study “Public Administration”. It will help me become a better administrator, with good leadership qualities if applied, knowing what leadership style to adopt and apply as a potential leader.
1.7 Scope of the Study
This study on the effect of good leadership and administration in nation building is a broad subject which can take an intellectual toll on the writer as well as the reader. For simplicity purpose, the scope has been limited to our country Nigeria, using the present administration of President Muhamadu Buhari as a case study.
