Wanted: Visionary leaders that inspire

"If your actions inspire others to dream more," said former American President John Adams, "learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." These words rung in my head as I prepared to give a talk to senior civil servants at the School of Government last week.

The process of transforming a community or a nation requires a visionary leader capable of chanelling the energies of the people and the aspirations to a common goal.

Through history, nations were transformed by people who are acknowledged today for their achievements.

Take for example the two people that have significantly influenced the world; the Prophet Mohamed and Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Both men share a common characteristic.

They were brought up in humble and relatively poor backgrounds. One grew up in a carpenter's household. The society they lived in had many challenges and they came with a mission to transform their communities.

The circumstance and the issues that necessitated the emergence of these two leaders other than transcendental factors, were similar; poverty, suffering, exploitation and oppression.

It fell on them to unify and organise them to face these challenges and create a future where they looked up to. They were visionary leaders. For two centuries these two have influenced their followers to look forward to an eternal life. They left a mark.

The comparison between the founders of the world's two major religions and the crop of leaders we have today is as far apart as the moon is from the sun. To me it seems, our present leaders are not motivated to leave a mark.

Yet without passion, the economic, social and political challenges we experience won't be resolved.

Visionary leadership demands perseverance, fearlessness, resilience and a champion for the common good. The challenges we face today in Kenya are not any different.

The question is who is that one leader who will rally the people (I mean all the people) to address the grotesque levels of poverty, illiteracy, maternal child deaths, corruption, injustice and the deep sense of helplessness in our communities.

It is defeatist to accept that we are beyond salvage. No we are not. In fact, I see opportunity. However, to tap into these opportunities requires clear stewardship.

But then let us not get carried away; It is one thing to have dreams, it is another to have a development agenda, a to-do list.

The resources at our disposal for the running the government by any standards is more than enough. Of course it might not give us all the luxuries we need, but it certainly gives the opportunity if used prudently to transform our country.

The responsibility now lies with the policy makers and people in position of leadership to design the planning and implementation with a focus to target the people particularly the lower levels of our social strata.

One thing that now looks apparent is that most people in positions of responsibility in government lack a passion to do their work. People assume these positions without the intention to change and improve their lot, but for personal gain.

It is therefore difficult to explain how people who just got elected now possess mansions, villas and drive top-of-the-range vehicles, which cost more than the entire income from their lifetime earnings. Evidently, most of them as soon as they get elected, embark on a mission to raise funds for their re-election.

Steve Hilton, former advisor and chief strategist to British Prime Minister David Cameron in his new book More Human: A World where people come first, argues that whether it is money, housing, healthcare, education or our families, the world increasingly works for the few (read elites). Mr Hilton's remarks are relevant to the Kenyan setting. Honestly, how many of leaders put the people first? How many want to leave a mark?

Let us look at Government projects for example. The explosion of the dubious group called tenderpreneurs could only mean that development projects are purely motivated by the intention to enrich the few people Mr Hilton mentioned in his book.

When major infrastructural projects are being designed in most cases, the peasant in a far-flung village will never know about it.

In fact, he never knows who sat with who, where to decide when and where an airport or a road or a factory will constructed nearby. The elites will sit somewhere and design a project with a cut in mind.

Ever wondered why despite having unlimited natural resources a majority of our people live in squalor? The contradictions are too big to measure. Take some time and reflect on why.