THE CHURCH’S LEADERSHIP ROLE IN NIGERIA: A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF ITS HISTORICAL IMPACT AND CURRENT CHALLENGES

Abstract

While it may not be farfetched to assert that the church consisted of the cradle of leadership in Nigeria and indeed Africa, it is more perturbing to say that the church has drifted from its noble position to chasing after fantasies. The rationale behind this phenomenon remained enigmatic. It is believed that Christianity has in no small measure affected the polity through meaningful leadership in various capacities in Nigeria; however, it is regrettable to say that the church has shied away from its assignment. It posed serious problems on what measure the church should adopt in reclaiming its leadership mandate. The paper examined heuristically the position of the church and her impacts in Africa, taking a cursory look at the Nigeria experience. Leadership is fundamental to all aspects of human endeavour and cannot be handled with levity; hence it becomes paramount to critically examine these fledging leadership tussles that have bedevilled the country in recent times. The paper sought to establish that religious leadership has a stronghold in the nation’s politics. The discourse captured salient areas such as the concept of religion, leadership and the impact of church leadership in Nigeria. To achieve this goal, therefore, the historical and phenomenological methods of religious research were deployed. It also adopts the transformational leadership theory which examines transformational leaders as those connected to their followers in such a way that it raises the level of motivation and morality committed to a collective good. The paper concluded by recommending the values of Christian leadership espoused by the church should be imbibed to revamp the lacuna already created in the country. It advanced for the adoption of Christian leadership traits and values as a panacea to effective leadership structure in the Nigerian polity.