The drums are silent. The spontaneous celebrations that greeted the announcement of Caleb Mutfwang as winner of the March 18 Plateau State gubernatorial election are over. At least for now.

It is time to start strategizing for governance, serious governance.

Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown. In Plateau State, the crown will be studded with thorns for the in-coming governor. The burdens he will inherit will be enormous and the weight of expectations of citizens is incredibly heavy, to say the least.

Victory, like the sweet smelling rose, attracts butterflies, other insects, even bees which sting. The governor-elect must apply wisdom and discernment to distinguish harmless insects from those that sting. These have the potential of inflicting pain and derailing his vision for this state which has suffered so much in the last eight years.

Political analysts suggest that he must stamp his foot down and not allow political jobbers, the bees, poison him into stupor, failure. The good thing, however, is that even his ardent critics and detractors agree that he possesses the grit to withstand all negative forces and confidently march on to meet the yearnings of citizens.

But have no doubt about this: the nature and prospects of a new government can be assessed by its initial steps. Therefore, Mutfwang should be very circumspect in the first steps he takes. Especially in the coming days when the heat will be on him as he begins assembling his team.

Is it better to step on toes now and attain success ultimately than pander to the whims of self-serving individuals now and reap the sour rewards later? Would a courageous and resolute leader not mind stepping on some toes here and there to pull through his vision? Some say that that would amount to political suicide. Perhaps?

Whatever be the case, Plateau State is on the brink today because in the last eight years it was saddled with a leadership that had no vision, lacked courage and was not decisive in handling critical matters of state. Barrister Mutfwang does not lack these requisite leadership qualities and values.

The buck always ends at the table of the leader, at the end of the day. But that is not all. All successes and failures also end up on his head. It is based on these that his tenure shall be finally adjudged to have either failed or succeeded.

At the end, the leader is left to himself, a solitary figure, to bear his own cross. He and he alone will account to God and man for his time on the exalted seat of power.

Then the butterflies, other insects and the bees would have already flown away to once again find another victim to suck, without any compunction whatsoever.

That is the cruel reality of leadership.

Surely, it is not all that glitters around Mutfwang at the moment that is gold. Therefore, he must studiously and dispassionately look about him and carefully select the seeds from the chaff. He must not fall into the quagmire of looking for familiar faces, considering personal relationships, giving in to the deceptions of eye-service merchants in apportionments key into and critical positions.

Of course, personal ties and such other considerations cannot be completely discountenanced while making appointments in a political system such as ours which thrives on patronage. But the overriding consideration should be merit and competence – if Plateau must move on from its current state of stasis.

Chris Gyang, Chairman, Journalists Coalition for Citizens’ Rights Initiative (JCCRI)

The drums are silent. The spontaneous celebrations that greeted the announcement of Caleb Mutfwang as winner of the March 18 Plateau State gubernatorial election are over. At least for now.

It is time to start strategizing for governance, serious governance.

Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown. In Plateau State, the crown will be studded with thorns for the in-coming governor. The burdens he will inherit will be enormous and the weight of expectations of citizens is incredibly heavy, to say the least.

Victory, like the sweet smelling rose, attracts butterflies, other insects, even bees which sting. The governor-elect must apply wisdom and discernment to distinguish harmless insects from those that sting. These have the potential of inflicting pain and derailing his vision for this state which has suffered so much in the last eight years.

Political analysts suggest that he must stamp his foot down and not allow political jobbers, the bees, poison him into stupor, failure. The good thing, however, is that even his ardent critics and detractors agree that he possesses the grit to withstand all negative forces and confidently march on to meet the yearnings of citizens.

But have no doubt about this: the nature and prospects of a new government can be assessed by its initial steps. Therefore, Mutfwang should be very circumspect in the first steps he takes. Especially in the coming days when the heat will be on him as he begins assembling his team.

Is it better to step on toes now and attain success ultimately than pander to the whims of self-serving individuals now and reap the sour rewards later? Would a courageous and resolute leader not mind stepping on some toes here and there to pull through his vision? Some say that that would amount to political suicide. Perhaps?

Whatever be the case, Plateau State is on the brink today because in the last eight years it was saddled with a leadership that had no vision, lacked courage and was not decisive in handling critical matters of state. Barrister Mutfwang does not lack these requisite leadership qualities and values.

The buck always ends at the table of the leader, at the end of the day. But that is not all. All successes and failures also end up on his head. It is based on these that his tenure shall be finally adjudged to have either failed or succeeded.

At the end, the leader is left to himself, a solitary figure, to bear his own cross. He and he alone will account to God and man for his time on the exalted seat of power.

Then the butterflies, other insects and the bees would have already flown away to once again find another victim to suck, without any compunction whatsoever.

That is the cruel reality of leadership.

Surely, it is not all that glitters around Mutfwang at the moment that is gold. Therefore, he must studiously and dispassionately look about him and carefully select the seeds from the chaff. He must not fall into the quagmire of looking for familiar faces, considering personal relationships, giving in to the deceptions of eye-service merchants in apportionments key into and critical positions.

Of course, personal ties and such other considerations cannot be completely discountenanced while making appointments in a political system such as ours which thrives on patronage. But the overriding consideration should be merit and competence – if Plateau must move on from its current state of stasis.

Chris Gyang, Chairman, Journalists Coalition for Citizens’ Rights Initiative (JCCRI)