By Kamal Yalwa: LAGOS, NIGERIA
Former Minister of Education, Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili, and Founder of the Citadel School of Government (CSG), Pastor Tunde Bakare, have called for the grooming of a new generation of leaders committed to values, competence, and nation-building.
They made this call on Saturday during the official launch of the Citadel School of Government and the onboarding ceremony for the pioneer class of its Advanced Diploma in Public Leadership and Statecraft, held at the Citadel Multipurpose Hall, Oregun, Ikeja, Lagos. The nine-month diploma programme is a collaborative initiative between the Citadel School of Government and the University of Lagos Business School (ULBS).
The programme, according to the organisers, is designed to bridge Nigeria’s leadership gap by equipping participants with the ethical grounding and practical tools necessary for effective public sector governance.
Dr. Ezekwesili, who delivered the keynote lecture, expressed deep concern over what she termed the “democratisation of corruption” in Nigeria. She lamented the country’s failure to address the institutional decay undermining good governance.
“We have no business to fail; failure is not our destiny,” she said. “Corruption is corrosive. For years, people pretended not to see what was happening until it became systemic and normalised. Now everybody says, ‘If you can’t beat them, join them.’ Join who?”
She stressed that character must be the foundation of leadership. “No matter how competent you are, if you lack character, you will go nowhere,” she said, urging the incoming students to reject compromise and embody the values of integrity and service.
Pastor Bakare, in his remarks, described the programme as a bold step toward raising “a new breed without greed” and preparing young leaders to drive transformative change across Nigeria and beyond.
“Our mission is to raise nation builders—leaders grounded in values and equipped with the competencies to champion a new philosophy of governance,” he said.
“With your induction into this programme, I believe Nigeria is on the brink of experiencing a new wave of transformative leadership. We are building a leadership pipeline to operate from the local level to global platforms.”
He noted that the partnership with the University of Lagos ensures participants benefit from academic excellence and real-world policy exposure. The Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between the two institutions was signed in June by UNILAG Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Folasade Ogunsola, and CSG Board Chairman, Pastor Bakare, alongside other key officials.
Pastor Bakare also highlighted that the Advanced Diploma programme will combine classroom instruction with fieldwork, mentoring, and policy simulations. The goal, he said, is to produce public leaders capable of thinking globally while acting locally.
He commended the University of Lagos Business School for its collaboration, calling it “a model of how the ivory tower can meet the policy roundtable to generate solutions.”
Bakare concluded by urging the pioneer class to prepare for a challenging but rewarding journey.
“You have just accepted the call of destiny by joining this pioneer cohort. The road will not be easy, but the opportunities for service and leadership are immense,” he said.
The first cohort of the Advanced Diploma in Public Leadership and Statecraft begins this month.
