Alex Otti: When Empathy Governs

James Ume

According to Pope Francis, the first Jesuit head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State, “The capacity for empathy leads to a genuine encounter – we have to progress toward this culture of encounter – in which heart speaks to heart.” This timeless insight by the venerable shepherd of Christ speaks to what is right – and often missing about humanity.

The second leg of this intervention dwells on “Gratitude” which as Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman statesman, scholar, philosopher, orator and writer asserted, “Is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.”

These two enduring human and fundamentally spiritual attributes provide a fitting context for my rather emotional essay. Emotional, because as I shared a deeply felt message of gratitude from an important personality from the Abia State academia with Dr. Alex Otti, the governor of Abia State, I was confronted with a most unexpected emotional outburst I had ever seen from a friend. It was an experience that completely changed my perception of leadership and leaders.

I must make it clear that I didn’t seek the permission of my friend, Alex, to recall this very personal incident. But I feel compelled by my conscience to bring it to the public.

The hardworking Rector of Abia State Polytechnic, Dr. Christopher Kalu Okoro had sent me a message asking me to communicate the gratitude of the staff of his institution to Governor Alex Otti. Obviously, Alex had given the institution some unexpected and sudden funding lifeline.

The message read: “Chief please kindly help me thank Dr. Alex Otti for putting smiles once again on the faces of staff of our school. The healing process that will reverse the injustices meted on some members of the polytechnic community has just been birthed. This will definitely fast-track the transformation of our school. Chief, thank him specially on our behalf.”

At about 00:02am. last Monday, I forwarded the message to Alex, and he called me about 20 minutes later. We spoke for about 50 minutes.  He was so surprised at the message and observed that people were so appreciative of some of the little things done by his administration.

But I reminded him that since he is an economist, and that in elementary economics, they teach about the tangible and the intangible indices of development.  I told him this was one of those intangible development indices many underrate but which are really the things that count with the people. I’m sure he was in the bathroom or just exited it at the time because I could hear rushing water.

While responding, he told me he just returned from a visit to the campuses of Abia State University in Umuahia and the main campus at Uturu for onsite assessment of facilities there. He said he was sad at the dilapidated conditions of infrastructure in the campuses, particularly the hostels. He gave a graphic description of the rot he saw. And while he was describing the state of the school, he burst into tears and started crying on the phone!

You read right. The state chief executive of Abia State, Governor Alex Otti, wept on the phone because he saw students living in an uninhabitable environment! He said the hostels did not qualify for habitation even for animals! He was asking me, “James, how can we subject our children to these conditions?”

I was genuinely shocked and momentarily confused on how to respond. Here was a state governor crying because he found some students living in squalid conditions.

After I tried to calm him down, he revealed he promised the institution a brand-new hostel, a 5000-bed hostel for both male and female students. He also said the Faculty of Law at the Umuahia campuses of the university will be moved back to the main campus in Uturu. He said a structural engineer had told him that one of the faculty buildings had failed integrity test. So, he told them to knock down the building immediately and gave the VC three months to ensure there is “enormous progress” on the rebuilding works.

Apart from the extensive work he’s doing in the state, which shows preparedness and focus for leadership, Alex’s humility and empathy have improved my perception of character in leadership. The governor’s reaction to squalor and poverty also brought me close to tears.

Such a level of sensitivity to the welfare of the people was clearly uncommon. It was unprecedented. It is the type that drives philanthropy.  I was also so moved that I felt a conscientious urgency to communicate this side of him to the public.

Alex’s decision to visit the campuses of the state university and the emotion he expressed at the living condition of students immediately brought home to me the reason leadership is said to be a trust. It reminded me about the words of Simon Sinek, a New York Times bestselling author of Leaders Eat Last, who said “Leadership is not about being in charge. Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge.”

Alex had taken charge of the needs and expectations of the people who elected him into office. He is one of the few state chief executives I know who lead with compassion and empathy. He is connecting with the people and immersing himself in their struggles and worries. Alex has been able to inspire everyone and every sector of the state to believe that good governance is possible.

This is why he’s able to galvanise everyone to key into his vision in every sector. For instance, Abia State has established free and compulsory education from primary to secondary school to ensure children of the poor also have access to education. He set up a task force to enforce the policy. But the government later found out that there was no need for the task force. There was no need to chase anyone into the classroom; the people had embraced the policy declaration wholeheartedly.

The last time Alex visited my house in February this year, he told me the task force had no work to do because everybody had gone back to school! School enrolment had increased over a hundred percent since his declaration of free education! It was proof that lack of money was actually the reason kids were not going to school. When it became free, everyone automatically started going to school.

He also created a monthly stipend for all primary schools to ensure smooth administration of schools. Apart from salary and running costs, head teachers of the primary schools also get a stipend of one hundred thousand Naira monthly. They had never had it so good, and the future of education in the state had never been so bright.

These are little gestures from the government that can go a long way in motivating young people and changing the course of their lives for good. They are the intangible indices that are often overlooked but that directly benefit the people. I have no doubt that these are the soft touches of governance that will bring forth a new generation of Abia citizens.

By some coincidence, Alex’s passion for the educational emancipation of Abia folks is driven by a similar philosophical underpinning that guides my own humble intervention in the education arena and other sectors. Through the Unubiko Foundation, a philanthropic interventionist body I birthed over a decade ago, we have measurably impacted Abia State in the critical education sector as well as other key, diverse humanitarian sectors. The Unubiko Foundation Scholarship Program has benefitted hundreds of primary/secondary/tertiary students in Abia and beyond.

The Foundation has granted funds exceeding one billion Naira to benefit more than 50 communities throughout Abia State and beyond. In line with SDG4-Education, the Unubiko Foundation targeted rebuilding and funding of educational projects across Nigeria.

I am hugely inspired by Nelson Mandela, Africa’s preeminent sage’s insight that, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world,” underscoring its transformative potential for individuals and society. Mandela rightly believed that education was crucial for personal development and societal progress, enabling people to overcome adversity and achieve their full potential. What Alex is doing today in Abia State has simply fired me up further. But I digress.

As noted by Dr. Tracy Brower, a Ph.D. sociologist and author of The Secrets to Happiness at Work and Bring Work to Life by Bringing Life to Work, empathy is the most important skill needed for successful leadership. Great leadership, she stated in a recent Forbes article, requires a fine mix of all kinds of skills to create the conditions for engagement and performance, but empathy tops the list of what leaders must get right.

It is empathy that pushes a leader to understand the daily struggles of the people and find ways to lessen their challenges, as Dr. Alex Otti has been doing since he became governor of Abia State. All the policies and programs of his administration are evidence of an uncommon empath. All his infrastructure projects have directly touched the daily lives of the people, whether they be roads, bridges, or drainages.

Alex  is not just a man of the People, he is a man for the people. I had thought of myself as a humanist who believes in prioritizing the welfare of people. But Alex has taught me the true meaning of compassion and why it is critical for everyone to contribute to the pursuit of a meaningful life for the people and promote a compassionate society. It is not enough for us to live well as individuals or leaders. We must become socially responsible to impact society.

While governance may be some abstract concept in some states of the federation, Alex  is making it a visible phenomenon in Abia State. The people see tangible proofs of a government that is working for them.  The governor feels the pain of the people and works to take away the pains. That is leadership by empathy. It is how every leader should be.

Successful leaders, according to several studies, are those who consider the feelings, fears, and expectations of others in their decision-making. They are those who take their time to find out about the people directly, like Alex is doing in Abia. This increases cooperation from the people and fosters more empathy in society.

People will trust leaders who engage with them and show commitment to their cause. The people may not remember what you say, but they will remember how you made them feel. It was the way he made me feel after the midnight phone call that drove me to pen this tribute to a truly great leader, my friend and my brother.

According to renowned Austrian-American management sage Peter Drucker, “The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence – it is to act with yesterday’s logic.”  Alex has evidently envisioned a new order for Abia State and jettisoned yesterday’s development logic.

I dare say that Abia State is lucky to have such a man at the helm of affairs. It is as if God has finally answered the prayers of the people after decades of bad leadership.

•Chief James Ume (Ike Abam) is the founder of Unubiko Foundation