LEADERSHIP is the golden gun and strategy (giving the country strategic direction) is the silver bullet. Together, they represent a potent coupling for achieving the vision for our nation.

Together, leadership and strategy can win the soul of a nation, unite us in purpose, provide a secure environment for its citizens, align the spend with the need in its social programmes, secure its economic future, positively influence its unique culture, restore the pride in its people, and guarantee First World nation status.

Yet we as a people superficially search for answers where there are none, and spend an inordinate amount of time and energy complaining about the problems and looking backwards. We the people have ceded the future of our nation to the politician, through our inaction.

We have lost our vision and our purpose, our ability to think strategically, and have replaced it with a large dose of hopelessness. We have given up on ourselves to provide the answers.

Leadership is a multi-faceted skill that requires much more than just good character, knowledge, experience and competence. It is about understanding strategy and risk, setting the tone from the top, and building a team. It is about communication and keeping your hand on the pulse of the nation by surrounding oneself with representative leaders in business, labour, inter-religious, community, NGOs, etc.

Leadership is about understanding governance structure, constitutional value and fitness, appreciating the value of public institutional accessibility and of valuing civic institution cooperation. Leadership is about improving accountability between the executive and the legislature. Leadership is about improving the lives of others.

Political leadership, as we have seen in the past and certainly at the present time, does not start to address the foregoing values and traits a successful leader should own. This is because a leader of any of the two major political parties can safely shelter and hide within the bosom of the party executive and the cronies that support them.

They are not interested in the citizenry, or the country’s fortunes. It is about self. These party leaders cower behind the frail veil of their party faithfulkings with puffed chests in their tribal house, but uncertain and afraid to step into communities where foul water lies.

Any leader with vision will come to understand that successfully developed nations rely on a structured and strategic approach to developing themselves. Defining who and what you want to be, and developing strategies to effect same, is paramount to moving from hopelessness to achieving First World status. Aligning leadership with strategic purpose is key to taking the country forward and giving the citizens real hope.

Has anyone attempted to define what our country should look like and represent to our citizens?

Ask yourself: are the present set of political leaders capable of achieving the foregoing for our people?

They will continue to focus on their tribe and core, and will completely discard the value and relevance of the other 400,000odd individuals who do not support them but have a right to vote.

This group of 400,000-odd disenfranchised citizens would do well to unite themselves in purpose and create a powerful energy force armed with quality leadership and strategy. Dovetail the golden gun with the silver bullet, and spark real change and transformation by placing country first, people first.

Project 600 recently held a successful march against crime to awaken the civic spirit of our citizenry and to unite citizens in purpose. I eagerly look forward to Project 600’s next initiative to empower our people and urge all to come out and get involved.

I am also aware of the planned unity walk in May promoted by DJ Bravo and commend him for same. I am hopeful that we will begin to add value to these unity gatherings by having defined deliverables aligned and purpose defined.

Having abdicated its responsibility to its country over the last 60 years, civic society must now awaken and embolden itself on national issues and thereby forever remove this stain, this selfish dependence on the politician.

If you support country first, people first, and are prepared to stand and be counted, declare yourself!

I just have!

Michael Scott