Implications Of Bad Leadership

DANIEL ADDISON University Of North Carolina Charlotte Implications of Bad Leadership on Individuals, Institutions and Nations

Introduction It has always been my desire to see the world enjoy peace and harmony among each other, where every individual will enjoy his or her right. Several years I have pondered on bad leadership styles as a whole and its implications on individual and nations. Most a times power tends to corrupt us as humans. We employ dubious means just to fulfill our selfish desires at the expense of others. This research paper seeks to identify such problems, its implications on various individuals, institutions, nations and continent as a whole. It also suggest certain views to help modify such situations by making reference to similar acts during the past and present. Arising of super powers from the early nineteenth century till today have indeed created chaos among one another with the ultimate aim of having dominion over others. I went ahead to compare the different leadership styles for readers to actually analyze the best option to make the world a more better place to live. Terms; Leadership: (Chemers M. 1997) An integrative theory of leadership describes" Leadership as a process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. The Oxford Dictionary also describes Leadership as the action of leading a group of people or an organization to achieve set goals. Another popular definition of leadership is the process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal ( Northouse's 2007 Pg.3). The U.S military definition for leadership is a

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process by which a soldier influences others to accomplish a mission (U.S Army 1983). From all the above definitions about Leadership, it is observed that they all have one process in commona person influences others to get something achieved. How do these persons carry out that process?. By applying their knowledge and skills which is termed as process leadership( Jago, 1982). (Allemann, M.W 2013) Leadership Insight, discusses the various types of leadership styles in her article. She argues that "leadership is not a 'one size fits' all thing". and therefore there are many ways that leaders can successfully lead people and that choosing the right style of leadership for a particular situation can help them to be effective leaders at the long run. Transformational Leadership- This is a type of leadership style normally associated with the business world which is found to be the most effective approach. Leaders found in this style inspire people with a shared vision of the future by setting clear goals and motivating them to attain it. They communicate clearly with their teams and expect the best from everyone and themselves which leads to motivation and high productivity. Autocratic leadership- This type of leadership style focuses on complete power over their teams. Leaders are tyrannical and dictators ;they don't take into account the views of their subordinates. Even though its efficient thereby having tasks completed quickly, it is not embraced by others on the team. Democratic Leadership- In this style, team members are included in decision making process thereby encouraging creativity and participation. This ensures high job satisfaction and motivation to work hard.

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Laissez-Faire Leadership- It encourages its members to work on their own. They are given the freedom to work and set their own deadlines. This leadership style can be most effective when team members are experienced and also constant supervision and feedback from the leader. Task Oriented leadership- This focuses on getting a particular task accomplished. It can more or less be considered as autocratic because leaders define the work, roles ,plan and organize everything that is been done. Nodding syndrome: This is a recent, little-known disease which emerged in Sudan in the 1960s. It is a fatal, mentally and physically disabling disease that only affects children, typically between the ages of 5 and 15 years. http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=2&t=1&islist=false&id=187580341&m =187770146 Literature Review Leadership as a precursor to war. (Kellerman B 2013) and (Noam C 2007) both agree to the fact that leadership styles had a tremendous impact on wars. According to ( Kellerman B 2013) she focuses her attention on how people exercise powers, and authority thereby influencing the actions of other people. They back their research article on similar thoughts of other philosophers that people in their natural state are rapacious and aggressive (Hobbes 1588-1697) and that without strict political arrangements and rule by leaders with iron fists would inevitably descend into chaos and war. ( Kaldor M) also shares her ideas to support that leadership was a major factor that contributed to most wars. Kaldor M. argues that the claim for power on the basis of a particular identity-be it national, clan, religious, or linguistics in one sense causes wars. (Addison 2014) shares a

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common idea to the above. He carefully argues that mans desire to achieve certain goals through dubious means have played a major role to causes of wars. From the observation he conducted about the figured world "The Legend Of The Seeker", he concludes that it is out of the greedy nature of humans to acquire certain gains through the practice of bad leadership styles causes wars. He also feels that when the right style of leadership are used to govern people, it brings about a peaceful and harmonious coexistence among people, nations, continents and the world at large. Tracing conflicts back to leadership ( Kalshoven F, Leisbeth L 2009) both based their book on tracing conflicts to leadership as far back as the nineteenth centuries . They made reference to events such as armed conflicts in the former Yugoslavia; between Iraq and Iran, Ethiopia and Eritrea; in Afghanistan, Sudan, Rwanda, Congo, Somalia, Sri-Lanka and Columbia attributing them to leadership. (Kellerman B 2013) argues his ideas that leaders behave badly because of whom they are and what they want. In such cases they end up descending chaos and war. He believes that the only solution to this acts is through the United Nations coming together to revise their laws to restrict everyone from engaging is such barbaric acts. (Lee Chai and Bargh A.J 2001) trace the origin of power as far back as the days of Adam and Eve and that famous tree of knowledge. They discussed how a command was given by a powerful figure. They believed power and leadership originated since the beginning of creation. (Lee Chai and Bargh 2001) made reference to( Kipnis D) Using Power-Newton's second law by quoting from the (Hobbesian 1968) " that humans were programmed by our desires and by our dependence on other people to satisfy these desires". So in their opinion, they agreed that man was a self- seeking creature who will do whatever it takes to lead.(Waite D , Allen D 2003) also share their view on such practices associated with

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leadership styles thereby causing conflicts. They described corruption and abuse of power as major practices used by certain leaders to amass wealth fame and power at the expense of their subjects. From all ideas shared above, One can justify without any reasonable doubt that wars, and conflicts arise because of the actions of leaders. Implications for poor leadership (Npr News 2014)- focuses on some effects of poor leadership styles. According to (Npr 2014) countries are suffering from major problems such as loss of lives, health issues, hunger and many more that are caused by wars. It names Syria, and parts of Africa as examples . According to( Kielty M 2014) from Npr news several years of war in Uganda have left children suffering from nodding syndrome. (Summerfield D 2002) conducts a survey on the effects of war on people. He deduces from the report that most victims suffer vengeance due to traumatism or brutalization. (Dr. Kaur Hanspreet 2013) also agrees that wars have serious implications on people .He names draught, famines, diseases, and death as such disastrous consequences Entering the Conversation Today most of us will bare to the fact that super powers have added more to modern conflicts instead of being a solution to such acts thereby causing effects on individuals, institutions and continents as a whole. Below I have traced these acts with specific examples to give readers indepth knowledge about the origin and implications. For instance the cause of the first and second world wars dated as far back as the nineteenth century were caused by the emergence of certain super powers whose aim was to have the entire world under their control. Such acts can therefore be attributed to the idea of leadership. From the literature review section I described the various forms of leadership and what they seek to

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achieve. The authoritative style of leadership was mostly practiced during the early days. When we consider both the first and second world wars, we see that countries such as France and Germany were the then super powers behind such acts. Emergence of these arbitrary rulers; Napoleon and Adolf Hitler whose major aim was to achieve dominance and power through leadership. Their actions influenced the beginning of chaos which left serious impacts on the minds of those who experienced it. Even the younger generation today have come to learn about such atrocities that was caused during that period including the lost of life's, destruction of properties and all kinds of emotional trauma. Another reference is the Vietnam war fought between super powers Asians and United States was no different from the world war. From my perspective, I think these powers wanted to show higher power over another, hence led to this type of conflict causing lost of several lives. A famous quote which states that " Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely (Lord Acton.1987) is what these super powers have been engaging from centuries till now. This has made the world more of a superiority thing than an equity thing. The ultimate motives behind gaining absolute control over others happen to bring disagreement thereby causing conflicts. According to a popular African proverb which states that " When two elephants fight, it's the smaller animals that suffers " explains this more. Why did I refer to such a proverb?. This is just to mean that when mighty nations fight among themselves, the consequences thereof are experienced by the ordinary people and lesser nations. Example when the Hiroshima and Nagasaki war was fought we can testify that the poor and helpless people were the major victims. Many deformities were recorded during birth at that part of the continent. Kids were born with no limbs or immature .

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There is no denying to the fact that some nations are more endowed and ahead of others. Since America attacked their opponents off their shores the suffered nothing. However, a general law of nature expects that those who know more, possess more and brandish more power demonstrate a bigger obligation towards the weaker ones. Instead of their wrongful interventions which have been seen as subtle destructive techniques by such Super Powers. In my opinion I think these powerful nations should rather focus on approaches that have the tendency to create a good rapport between their leadership and those of the weaker nations; approaches which are humane and likely to achieve tremendous results. Provide intelligence/military to distressed nations Our world has shrunk to a small village; thanks to the influence of globalization. This explicitly implies that what happens in any part of the world could escalate into other parts easily or in a milder form provide precedent for others. Injustice is bad and it should be condemned in no uncertain terms everywhere it occurs. When leadership crises do get out of control in the so called weaker nations, and consequently leads to factionalism fighting, one of the best approaches the powerful nations can adopt is to use diplomatic avenues to create a solution pathway to the issues at stake. Diplomacy may not always be successful in conflict resolution, and even in situations of such nature, so the powerful nations should exercise restraint in the use of crude force in resolving conflicts. When super powers pre-judge a hegemony matter and extend warfare assistance to radical organizations to fight law and order, they are in fact, acting contrary to the law of natural justice. America, Germany, France, Great Britain, Japan, Russia and the other big countries in the world should provide intelligence support to the distressed nations instead of contributing to the tension already prevailing in those nations.

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Desist from funding rebellious groups Ivory Coast is an example, during the civil war in 2011, there were two factions fighting against each other. In Libya, a similar situation occurred and in Egypt, it was the same. Giving recognition to and providing funding or other forms of support to these groups which has been the norm of the Super Powers is plainly unacceptable. Some great countries support these rebels or opposition groups by giving them weapons and technical training they require to operate such weapons. In the interim, the action could lead to temporary peace. However, what happens after the conflict subsides; how will the rebellious organizations utilize the warfare knowledge acquired? And how will these insurgent groups integrate into society peacefully?.These are some challenging enquiries that demand attention. In seemingly, providing quick fix remedies to problems of other countries, these super powers end up creating a sea of problems in the same nations. In Libya, the rebels who fought and toppled the Gaddafi led government with the assistance of NATO, have become a burden and threat to the current government today. They are armed mentally and physically because of the assistance the West provided to them some time ago. But now they have become a bane to the country principally because they can overthrow any government at the least provocation or disagreement and they have begun that with the new leadership already as I write. Intervening at the right time In the circus of health, a saying exists to the effect that" disease prevention is better than cure". In the military or security sector, they assert that attacking an enemy is easier than embarking on rescue missions: and in plant disease management, there is a term known as economic-threshold level; the level of insect damage to crops at which point it is economically wise to institute and

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enforce a control measure. This threshold is used so that the farmer doesnt run at a loss in the agrarian enterprise whiles instituting a pest management strategy. Making direct comparisons to the human world, I believe the conventional way in which modern super powers wait till a time when they feel too much carnage has occurred before they act need to be revised seriously. Laws should therefore be implemented to control such behaviour. In our human world, the economicthreshold level is when we see symptoms of trouble looming. Waiting for two, ten, one hundred or thousand people to perish before planning interventions most often becomes an action too late to actually make any high yielding impact. In our human world, determining when too much blood is spilled or carnage is done should be when the first blood is spilled; one person killed is too much enough for the world to begin interventions. Nigeria is a best fit example to use to illustrate this suggestion. There has been a fight between the Boko-Haram religious Sect and the Nigerian government forces since the year 2000; thousands of civilians and service personnel have lost their lives through this 14-year old conflict. The Boko-Haram Sect is fighting to establish an Islamic State mainly in the northern sector of the country and they are ignoring the presence of Christians and other belief systems in that part of the country. So many times, there have been bloody battles between Christians and the Muslims in the Northern part of Nigeria and thousands have died; military men and women have neither been spared in this battle. Suicide bombings, abductions and general pandemonium have characterized their activities. What can these powers do? during this time that the fight has not degenerated or become widespread?.They can help government forces with intelligence gathering and utilization support to control the problem before it gets out of control. But fourteen years down the lane, no help seems to be emanating from the super powers in this direction. This is a failure and if they are waiting for full-scale civil or religious war to arise before they act; I beg to state that such

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thinking can only be found in the lunatic asylum. Another example is the conflicts that constantly arise between Israel and Palestine's. We can testify that these so- called super powers have divided themselves supporting both countries because of what they get there. This conflicts have refused to be resolved and day in day out life's are been taken because like I said earlier these nations are against each other and they are responsible for decision making in the international law. Should the super powers begin to intervene faster or come to an agreement earlier ignoring their selfish desires than they had done in the past, they will not just be referred to as 'Super Powers', but probably they will be hailed as Super Powers by the same nations who nurse animosity towards them today. I also think that super powers should deem it expedient to avoid being bullies on other lesser countries, instead create a sense of security among one another. Also bad leaders should be brought to book and trialed fairly for infringing on individual rights. Example like how Saddam Hussein was brought to book, so should anyone caught in such an act be dealt with no matter if they belonged to the higher or lower class. In this situation the whole world will have their support and equality will be satisfied and assumed by all. So What? In conclusion, I wish to state that the super powers have made choices and decisions that have stigmatized them as dictators in the sight of the other nations. Perhaps they did not anticipate what their intervention would lead them into. But what is gone is gone, however if they could intervene faster, respect others and avoid being bullies than they had done in the past, but therefore providing intelligence and support to distressed nation and refrain from funding and supporting rebel groups which springs up to seemingly fight for their rights. Super powers stand

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to gain tremendously and much practically with the confidence of other countries losing their trust for them.

Nodding syndrome-Uganda.

Adolf

Hitler

Napoleon

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Konan- Uganda Warlord.

REFRENCES/ WORK CITED 1. Allen D, Waite D 2003- Abuse of power in Educational Administration. Urban Review. Vol. 35 No.4 p281-282 2. Addison D- The Legend of the Seeker 2014- Pg 3 3. Chai Lee .A, Bargh A 2001. J The Use and Abuse of Power-multiple perspectives on the causes of corruption. 4. Dr. Kaur H. 2013; World peace-Challenges and Remedies in the Context of Guru Granth Sahid. 5. Kellerman B 2013; Bad leadership, What it is, How it happens, Why it matters, P.30-49 6. Kielty M; Uganda Children face New deadly Threat -(www.npr.org 2014) 7. Keilty M; Civil war puts Syria Cultural heritage In Peril- (www.npr.org 2014) 8. Kaldor M; New and Old Wars- Organized Violence in Global Era 9. Liesbeth Z, Kalshoven F editor 2009; Constraints on waging of war- An introduction to International law. Pg.1-5 10. Noam C 2007- The Abuse of power and the assault on democracy. Pg. 4-20 11. . Summerfield D 2002; Effects of War-Moral knowledge, Revenge, Reconciliation and medicalised Concepts of recovery ( P.1105-1107) 12. Walzer M 2006; Just and Unjust Wars-A moral argument with historical illustrations. Pg.21