By Sylvester Thompson
Dr Chibuike Echem, President of Princeton Leadership Forum(PLF) says it will begin leadership training programmes across secondary schools in Nigeria in 2023.
Echem said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines of the maiden edition of their annual leadership summit in Abuja on Thursday.
He said: “In 2023 we are going to be launching our master class leadership program across secondary schools in Nigeria.
“We believe that catching the young people young, teaching the fundamentals of leadership is the way this country should go.”
The PLF President said the training children was aimed at imbibing good leadership qualities and principles at a tender age, saying, ”when they grow up, such qualities would become a norm for them.
”The forum was stepping up the art of leadership training because it was time for the country to transit from transactional to transformational leadership.”
Echem said the PLF as a unique leadership forum among many, was trying to do things differently for the benefit of youth as future leaders.
“PLF has partnered with the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies and that speaks a lot for us.
“We are not just like every other organsation, even though we are young, our main target is to see how we can groom young people who have interest in leadership,’’ Echem said.
On the 2023 general elections, he advised that Nigerians to look beyond tribal or ethnic sentiments, urging, ”vote for who you truly believe will high quality leadership.
”Nigerians should rather look at the candidate’s antecedents, competency and previous performances before casting their votes.”
Echem said the summit also featured presentation of awards to deserving leaders in different organisations.
Retired Brig-Gen. Chukwuemeka Udaya, who was the keynote speaker at the event also told NAN that youth were the future of any country, hence the need to properly groom them for such roles.
He said: ”The best way to prepare youth for leadership positions was for them to acquire knowledge and be adequately mentored.
Udaya urged the youths to avoid all acts that would disrupt the electioneering process, like violence.
Similarly, a former Chief of Staff in Imo, Mr Uche Nwosu, said that leadership was about the ability to influence people positively.
”One of the biggest crises of Nigerian leadership was how to show good example,” Nwosu added. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)