Gana made the call on Tuesday while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 conference of the Forum of Former Deputy Governors of Nigeria, where he stressed that effective leadership was essential to translating national aspirations into tangible results.
He criticised elected officials who spend years in office without delivering meaningful benefits to the people, arguing that leadership must be measured by the ability to implement ideas and produce results.
“Leaders must be competent. Competence or the sheer capacity to get things done. For God’s sake. If you are a leader, you have the capacity to turn ideas into action,” he said.
Gana Warns Against Leadership Without Character
The former minister identified competence, character and wisdom as essential qualities for public office, warning against selecting leaders primarily because of their wealth rather than their integrity and ability to serve.
He said the declining emphasis on character had contributed to governance challenges, adding that people entrusted with public responsibilities must demonstrate values that inspire confidence and promote accountability.
Gana also stressed that leaders needed the wisdom to appoint capable people who could help them achieve their objectives, warning that poor appointments could undermine governance and waste opportunities for national development.
He advocated a value-based leadership model that prioritises transparency, accountability, the rule of law, peace and security, anti-corruption efforts and effective service delivery. According to him, such an approach would improve productivity, create wealth, reduce poverty and support sustainable development.
Development Must Go Beyond Infrastructure
Gana also called for a reassessment of Nigeria’s understanding of development, arguing that modernisation, economic growth and infrastructure projects alone were insufficient without deeper economic transformation.
He maintained that genuine development required the capacity to produce goods and services locally, apply technology and utilise domestic resources to strengthen the economy.
“Development is not just doing modern things. It’s not modernisation. No, that’s not development. It’s not even economic growth. Development is transformation,” he said.
To illustrate his argument, Gana cited Malaysia’s palm oil industry as an example of how agricultural resources could be developed into major sources of national revenue.
Malaysia’s Palm Oil Industry Offers Lessons for Nigeria
Recalling a visit to Malaysia while serving as chairman of the Mass Mobilisation for Social Justice and Economic Recovery (MAMSER), Gana said he observed extensive palm plantations and rubber farms in an environment he considered similar to Nigeria’s.
He said Malaysia had developed its agricultural sector through institutions such as the Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA), while Nigeria established the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) following a memorandum he submitted to former military President Ibrahim Babangida.
However, he lamented that Nigeria failed to sustain the programme despite its potential to expand agricultural production, create jobs and generate revenue.
Gana cited Malaysia’s palm oil earnings as evidence of the economic opportunities available through agricultural investment, claiming the country generated about $24 billion from palm oil sales to the global market in the previous year.
He argued that Nigeria, with its vast land and agricultural potential, could generate substantially more revenue if it strengthened institutions such as NALDA and supported large-scale production.
The former minister urged the government to prioritise agriculture, strengthen relevant institutions and create policies that enable local industries to grow.
Nigeria’s Population Is an Economic Advantage
Gana further described Nigeria’s large population as a major economic asset, noting that the country’s sizeable domestic market could support industrialisation and local manufacturing.
He urged leaders to adopt bold policies that encourage productive investment and enable Nigerian businesses to meet domestic demand while expanding their capacity.
Gana is a political scientist and statesman who served as a senator during the Second Republic and held several ministerial positions, including Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Minister of Information and Culture, and Minister of Information and National Orientation. He also served as chairman of MAMSER under Babangida and as political adviser to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
