BY UCHECHUKWU OKOROAFOR, Abuja
A leader is someone who can see how things can be improved and who rallies people to move toward that better vision. Leaders can work toward making their vision a reality while putting people first. Just being able to motivate people isn’t enough — leaders need to be empathetic and connect with people to be successful.
Grow your business with us
Leadership is a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal. It was Warren Bennis who said that “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.” Bill Gates, one of the richest men in the world said, “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”
These attributes of leadership are found in abundance in the Spokesman of the House of Representatives Hon Benjamin Okezie Kalu, who is also a lawyer. Here is a man who has mastered the art of maximizing the effort of others towards the achievement of set goals and aspirations which catapulted him from local government chairman to the chairman House Committee on Media and Public Affairs. He has also demonstrated his capacity in translating the visions of Bende Federal Constituency to reality and has taken over communication vision of the 9th National Assembly and made it the most accessible Assembly since 1999. He has distinguished himself in all positions of leadership that he has held.
At 23 he was a student representative at the University of Calabar, Calabar Nigeria and at 29 he was the National chapter Chairman of PDP in diaspora with six provincial branches under his office. At 31 he was the youngest LGA chairman of Bende, the oldest and largest undivided LGA in Nigeria with 99 autonomous communities, a position he held from 2003 to 2004. At 34 he was a member of the Abia State Government Executive cabinet as the Senior Special Adviser to the Executive Governor on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs from 2007 to 2009; and at 35, the Senior Special Adviser to the Executive Governor on Millennium Development Goals and international relations from 2009 to 2010.
He is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State and Chairman House Committee on Media and Public Affairs.
Growing up, he spent most of his time in the rural area where he was born. That’s Bende town in Bende Local Government of Bende Federal Constituency. Like most Nigerians who grew up in rural areas he faced the dog race of the challenges of living in a rural area, where most of this country’s population resides. So, he saw the challenges with clean water, bad road, and lack of electricity. He saw the challenges with the lack of good classroom blocks. It was at that point that he decided to make an impact when he grew up, and that passion never left him. That passion has driven him to become a student leader, one of the student leaders when he was at the University of Calabar. It led him to be one of the first diaspora chairmen of PDP in the days of President Obasanjo in 1999. In 2019, his people elected him to the House of Representatives, but before then, in 2003, he was the youngest Local Government Chairman of Bende local government, and he served until he was called to the State to play a role at the State Executive Council. That he did twice, advising the Executive Council on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs. Also, advising in a new portfolio as the Adviser on Millennium Development Goals. He combined the position with International Affairs to ensure that he scouted for international investors, present Abia well before international community for the purposes of investment, and ensure that the road map towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals(MDGs) of the United Nations then was a smooth one.
When he won the election in 2019, he hit the ground running in the House, and the first Motion of the House, which is known as House Motion 001 (HM-001), was moved by him and from there has emerged all these bills that he sponsored or co-sponsored in the House: Federal College of Education Bende, (Establishment, etc.) Bill 2020, Industrial Development (Income Tax Relief) Act (Amendment) Bill, Counterfeit Currency (Special Provisions) Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020, Dangerous Drugs Act (Amendment) Bill 2020, Acts Authentication Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, Nigerian Meteorological Agency Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, Nigerian Communications Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, Internal Loans (Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Development) Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, Public Accounts Implementation Tribunal Act (Repeal) Bill 2019, Official Secrets Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
Associated Gas Reinjection Act (Amendment) Bill, National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency Act (Amendment) Bill, National Planning Commission Act (Amendment) Bill, Armed Forces Act (Amendment) Bill, Federal Cooperative College, Oji River (Establishment, etc.) Bill, Federal Cooperative College, Ibadan (Establishment, etc.) Bill, Federal Cooperative College, Kaduna (Establishment, etc.) Bill, Cybercrimes (Prohibition and Protection) Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020, Minerals and Mining Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Development Agency Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020, Automotive Tyres (Mandatory Inscription of Dates) Bill, 2020, Fiscal Responsibility Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020 and Flags and Coat of Arms Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020 among others.
He has shown capacity in terms of law-making, motions and also infrastructure development across Bende federal constituency. He has succeeded in putting smiles on the faces of the people he represents. Bill Gates says right leaders are those who empower others.
Benjamin Kaluis an embodimentof different leadership styles.He is a democratic leader who is also strategic, and processes his decision based on strategy and goals. You can say that he has the element of strategic leadership. He is also an energetic and focused leader. You can also describe him as a visionary leader. As a leader he is always bold in setting ambitious goals. He is a leader who pushes to think the new and versatile ways, which can be described as transformational leadership. He can also be described as a leader who nurtures individuals, so he has element of coaching leadership. He is a combination of Democratic, Strategic, Visionary, Pacesetting, Transformational and Coaching leadership. All these elements combine to form his leadership style, which he has applied repeatedly, contributing to his success as a lawmaker and representative.
How he relates with his constituents is in itself a study in leadership that is worthy of emulation by those who aspire to leadership positions in Nigeria and elsewhere. He engages with his constituents periodically, on a weekly basis. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he created what he called Bende Parliament, where they have sitting three days a week to engage with constituents, listen to their questions on pressing issues and proffer possible solutions on the things they need to do. After the pandemic, he launched a radio programme that gave him the opportunity to speak to his people regularly.
The BEN KALUS MANDATE programme airs on five radio stations every Tuesday in Abia State. Constituents listen and call in to ask questions or provide feedback on his representation while he educates them on his activities in the House. This has helped him stay in line with fulfilling the mandate they have given to him. In addition, he also holds a major Town Hall Meeting on the 29th of December annually, where he presents an annual report of his activities for the year and take a feedback report to plan his projections for the following year. This has helped him to represent them better.
He has executed several projects since his arrival at the National Assembly in 2019. From the House, he created ‘The Green Chamber Magazine’. It’s a rich magazine filled with a lot of content, bill tracking, activities of different constituencies, activities of the Speaker of the House to the Nation, all the Activities of the House well captured. It’s a beautiful project he captured for the House. Also, his Radio programme brings him closer to his people and helps him feel their pulse.
Regarding infrastructure, his biggest programme was the Ecological Fund Project, approved by President Muhammadu Buhari in response to the first motion of the House, which he moved. This project runs into millions, and is 98% completed. He has constructed bridges and roads to one of the largest communities in his constituency who have suffered and lost so many people due to the ecological menace they suffered. Achieving that remains one of his biggest projects. The Nkpa/Umuimenyi Ecological project involving bridges and road construction. This is indeed the highlight of his achievements in his first tenure.
Leadership is the accomplishment of a goal through the direction of human assistants and divine intervention. The man who successfully marshals his human collaborators to achieve particular ends is a leader. A great leader is one who can do so day after day, and year after year, in a wide variety of circumstances. Kalu is a study in successful leadership. He will make a great difference if elected the Speaker of the 10th House of Representatives.