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By Christian Enebe

According to George Bernard Shaw, “Some see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were and ask why not.” Dreaming things that never existed and asking “why not?”, is typically characteristic of people of exceptional intelligence who according to Justin Brown, “tend to be able to think outside the box and come up with unique and original ideas. They’re not afraid to challenge the conventional wisdom and think creatively to solve problems.” Justin Brown’s statement aptly captures Dr. Peter Mbah’s vision of the “new Enugu” which is practically a unique and original idea by which Dr. Peter Mbah has demonstrated exceptional intelligence in what was described as not only ambitious but also Innovative.

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Dr. Peter Mbah’s new Enugu vision follows Justin Brown’s postulation which states that “Intelligence isn’t just about following the rules and sticking to the status quo – it’s also about being able to think creatively and come up with innovative solutions.” It is no longer news that Dr. Peter Mbah developed unique and Innovative solutions on how to advance the development of Enugu state, and give birth to “the new Enugu” – the Enugu of our dreams. The initiative has captured the attention of Ndi Enugu all around the world in a clear demonstration of Dr. Mbah’s extraordinary ability to dream things that never existed, dream big and question the statusquo.

It is self evident that it takes innovative solutions to construct a desirable future and to chart a pathway to it. It goes to say that the nature of the future largely depends on innovative ideas or lack of it. This premise holds true whether in business, government or other areas. According to Pope Saint John Paul II, the erstwhile head of the Catholic Church and sovereign whose reign of the Vatican City State and the Catholic church spanned close to three decades,1978 to 2005, the year of his transition to glory, “the future starts today, not tomorrow.” This axiom implies that projections to determine future expectations should derive from present realities to which they are connected and upon which they are dependent.

Invention, innovation, creation, begin when we undertake the right actions or take the right steps such as when one asks “why not?” and when we practically and deliberately become creative and promote a culture of creative dissatisfaction. Someone has to initiate the process and that is what Dr. Peter Mbah has done. And as Walt Disney stated, “you can design, create and build the most wonderful place in the world. But it takes people to make the dream a reality.” It takes people who are willing and determined to make a difference and a leader who sees ahead of others that will propel them to action and lead the way.

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Humankind in generality are concerned about the future which they must face whether or not they are prepared. Fear of the future has remained a metaphor for the struggle to evade the bleak and unpropitious circumstances that pervade the socioeconomic space and means within the geographical location we have come to know as our world.

It does appear, rightly or wrongly, in perspectives that hold arguable indices that some parts of our world appear darker and the foreseeable future, bleak in varying places and for a number of people the world over. The sun seems to have been eclipsed for quite a number of people, eclipsed by the shadow of hopelessness, anticipated cum man-made vagaries, dearth of ideas and opportunities for realizing potentials and expectations in a world progressively dominated by whimsical arbitrariness of actions and inactions that oftentimes derail expectations and blur the brightness of the future. There is no gainsaying the fact that the world needs the light that creative ideas beam to illuminate the dark parts of our world and innovative minds to chart a course into the desired future.

Considering certain definable indices, one may conclude rightly or wrongly that our country, Nigeria is presently at crossroads. Going by the experiences of some Nigerians, the times are doubtless very challenging. There are indications that economic growth is decelerating and insecurity is on the increase among other challenges. In as much as the situation is being combated, there is a weighty burden on the next generation of leaders to take up the situation from where the current leaders will leave off towards finding a solution to these challenges. Such leaders should essentially be innovative and able to think outside the box.

Propelled by thoughts that are considered contextually analogous, George Kozmetsky in his article: “the changing economics of the world”, stated: “all the world’s nations have had to learn how to cope with economic dynamics in order to maintain or raise standards of living for their residents. Kozmetsky’s point is indicative of the indispensability of appropriate ideas, if not appropriate leadership models in coping with economic dynamics and in addressing socioeconomic situations which have far-reaching consequences.

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What makes Dr. Peter Mbah tick is the appropriateness cum timeliness of his ideas. Dr. Peter Mbah envisions a state insulated against existential threats, a state with a robust GDP, from the present $4.4B to $30B and moved to the top three position in the country. He aims at sustaining the gains made by the present and past governments in the state and to build on their achievements. He envisions a state with a zero percent rate in poverty headcount index with strategic objectives on how to take the state there and achieve sustainable prosperity for all citizens of Enugu State. He envisions a state that is technologically advanced and ahead with a robust business environment, a state that will become the preferred destination for investors. Besides, he envisions a secure state where sustainable peace pervades.

He also envisions a state that is private – sector driven and not any longer public- sector driven, a state that will move from consumption to production with high rate of productivity. He has developed strategic economic transformation objectives, poverty eradication initiatives, comprehensive urban renewal plan, rural development agenda. He has designed strategic management systems and above all, he has developed financing models to deliver the new Enugu State (See Dr. Peter Mbah’s Manifesto for details). There is no doubt that these initiatives will propel the economic dynamics and drive the entire state structure into a forward movement.

The struggle for national emancipation, national rebirth and cohesion, economic resuscitation and revitalization, the increasing need to accelerate national development and economic growth is common place and concurrent the world over but the approach in realizing them is both variable and divergent with dissimilar results across nations. Whereas some have emerged from the doldrums through creative ideas and innovative leadership, others have further sunk into the economic abyss for sheer lack of ideas if not for application of dysfunctional ideas.

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In view of what I have observed and learnt over the course of time, I believe that even though the economic fortunes of a people is largely determined by the viability of resources available to them which may be in both human and material forms, it is essentially dependent on the capability of their leaders to coordinate these resources and their overall activities and channel them along success lines. A competent leader enables these resources to be properly applied, maximally harnessed and gainfully utilized. Such a leader must be able to see ahead of others and essentially Innovative. This is the reason Dr. Peter Mbah is ahead and generally sought after.

Deriving from the above, the view or acquiescence that “anybody can lead or should lead” is an incautious hypothesis, not in any way correct but flatly wrong and detestable, particularly at a time like this. The practicable thing with potentiality for competent result in this clearly empirical matter, is that it takes quality leadership to take a people in the right direction. Such leadership must of necessity be a competent one, capable of providing needed inspiration, ideas and guidance that will bring together the collective resources and energy of the people into a unified and guided force, launched along the growth trajectory.

That is to say that it is simply not the case that progress is by chance which proponents of “anybody can or should lead” are consciously or unconsciously advocating. Like a bad driver, an incompetent leader cannot be trusted to drive a people to their future. As a matter of fact, even a relatively good driver can hardly be trusted if the best is determined. Otherwise, it will amount to toying with the future of a people. Dr. Peter Mbah has been adjudged the best and as the saying goes: “let him that the cap fits, wear it.”

Guided by this principle, nationals, consciously or unconsciously, look up to such resourceful members of the society in their midst to positively influence a change in their world that will set in motion the dynamics of progress. Apparently, any nation’s recovery and restoration is foreseeable with these pathfinders who in most cases lead a people – oriented change based on innovative leadership typology.

It is now common knowledge that one of such leaders expected to inspire a radical change, as far Enugu state of today is concerned, is Dr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, the Enugu State PDP Governorship Candidate for the 2023 election. He is young, competent, promising. and inspiring. Peter Mbah has the eyes of an eagle. He has looked far into Enugu’s future and has been able to distil the complex journey that leads to the desired future into an implementable strategy that was reduced to what he referred to as “a social contract with Ndi Enugu”.

Mbah has made revolutionizing Enugu state his priority having first tried out his astonishing ideas in his private firm with remarkable result. According to him, “Enugu state will experience a new level of quality leadership that will benefit all and sundry.” In another ocassion, he stated, “my administration will engender a paradigm shift in the state. Enugu state must act urgently to reposition and insulate itself from the existential threats the country is presently facing.” The existential realities of the present time is such that the human experience craves impacts that are reflective of modern day level of development that can be associated with new regimes of intellectual and contemporaneous currents of ideas.

The world is changing and the meaning of development has changed with digitalization and globalization, diverse technologies, new levels of technical awareness, new waves of political consciousness and innovations that are in tandem with modern day which is rapidly evolving. This simply refers to the changing of human needs in relation to time, novelty of emerging future and the need for leadership ingenuity.

The meaning of this is that a young leader in the mould of Mbah, who is a younger version in the mix of todays leaders but an obviously advanced mind, represents a present day leader who is well equipped considering his level of exposure to today’s global need, genius – level of intelligence and creative ability to take Enugu to the next phase of development. There is no doubt that Mbah is the leading candidate for the number one seat of Enugu state and the best candidate for the job. The reason is not farfetched: he has the requisite ingenuity and foresight. He prepared ahead of time. Beyond that, he has demonstrated extraordinary intelligence and the required creative ability necessary to chart a new course and propel accelerated development.

In a recent editorial, “Indeed”, an American worldwide employment website stated: “innovative leadership, which involves creative thinking is a style of leadership that involves applying innovation and creativity to managing people and projects. According to them, Innovative leaders often inspire productivity in new ways and through different approaches than have typically been used and taken. They concluded that the ability to apply innovation is especially important in times of uncertainty, ambiguity and risk. This explains the basis of Dr. Peter Mbah’s disruptive Innovation which aims at altering the statusquo with a view to move the state to another level..

According to Justin Brown, “one of the most obvious signs of exceptional intelligence is a knack for solving problems quickly and efficiently. Justin Brown opined that exceptionally intelligent individuals are able to take a seemingly complex problem and break it down into smaller, more manageable pieces, finding creative and innovative solutions along the way.

Richard Cushing had this in mind when he stated: “Always plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.” Preparing for the future is doubtless an essential skill particularly for a leader. A leader’s preparedness for the future determines how beneficial or otherwise the future will be for him and his subjects whose future, to a large extent, are dependent upon the leader’s preparedness for what lies ahead.

Lack of leaders with the requisite foresight, readiness for eventualities, mobility in the event of the unexpected and clear vision for the unclear future is oftentimes the bane of society where people often end up trying to force preparedness in the midst of chaotic situations rather than diligently preparing ahead of time. Rather than chosing prepared leaders, the society, in sheer ignorance, sometimes end up in a mess with unprepared leaders who may never find their way or help the society navigate through the challenging times. It is usually a case of trying to build the ark when the flood has begun which is more often than not, futile.

In conclusion, Peter Mbah’s innovative leadership model is the solution Enugu State needs at this critical and challenging time to navigate the tough times and find our way into the Enugu of our dreams.

Christian Enebe writes from Enugu, Nigeria.