NGO trains UNN students on impactful leadership principles
A non-governmental organisation (NGO), called Success Tonics International, on Monday, organised a summit to train some undergraduates of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) on impactful and transformative leadership.
The one-day programme, captioned Economics Leadership Summit, with the theme, “Making of a Transformative and Impactful Leader”, took place on the university campus.
Delivering a lecture on the theme, Dr Tony Orji, the Founder of the NGO and Associate Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, UNN, said the platform was founded to train young people to make a positive difference in their generation.
Orji said that Nigeria was in dire need of great and impactful leaders, who would turn around the economic fortunes of the country and change the society positively.
He said the vision of the summit was to raise global transformative and impactful leaders with excellent mindset and character.
Orji described leadership as the ability to know the way, show the way and go the way.
“I am inspired to convene this summit, given that our country is in dire need of good leaders; one of the major problems facing the country is poor leadership.
“If we have transformative leaders that have the interest of the masses at heart, some of the ills happening in our communities, country and society now will not happen.
“Training young people on leadership roles is a way of catching them young so that when they become adults and take elective or appointive positions, or become managers and captains of industry they will be able to make transformational change.
“The level of decay, bribery and corruption that is prevalent in our society among some of our leaders will not make our country to be among the top economies in the world.
“We want to get it right in these formative years; we thought it wise that this is the right time to start sowing the good leadership seed so as to catch them young,” Orji said.
According to him, a good leader must demonstrate high level character, integrity and honesty; must continually learn and grow as well as build strong relationships with people with effective communication skills.
He, therefore, urged the participants to imbibe the transformational leadership spirit which, he said, is inspirational, visionary, and innovative.
Orji listed Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Mahatma Gandhi of India, and Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore, amongst others, as exemplary and transformational leaders, who impacted their country and humanity positively.
Declaring the summit open, the Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, UNN, Prof. Chidi Nzeadibe, said that Orji had impacted both the Economics Department, students, faculty and the entire UNN.
He commended Orji for organising the programme for the students intended to make them transformational and impactful leaders in whatever positions they might find themselves in the future to make a difference in society.
“I commend the organiser of the summit for catching them young to imbibe excellent leadership qualities that will make them great leaders.
“I urge the students to avail themselves of this great opportunity to be transformative leaders, who will lead by example and integrity in any position they found themselves,” Nzeadibe said.
A Lead Pastor at Province of Grace Ministries International, Nsukka, Mr Innocent Eleke, described a good leader as one that must be open to learning at all times, since their decisions would either make or mar the people.
“A leader must be open to learning, ready to sacrifice at all times, if they want to be a servant leader.
“He must consider the people he is serving first before himself, especially when he wants to make critical decisions.
“The problem with some of our leaders is that they surround themselves with sycophants and wrong people, who will not tell them the truth because of what they are benefiting,” he said.
Eleke, however, urged the participating students not to be discouraged by the myriad of societal ills in the country but prepare themselves as agents of change for a better tomorrow through their leadership roles.
The Newsmen reports that the participants were drawn from different departments in the university.
Some students interviewed described the summit as a unique leadership training that has exposed them to the roles and qualities of a good leader.
They promised to share what they learnt on how to be good leaders in society with their peers and other students.
