Ranking the Best Nigerian President since 1960

Our ranking of the best Nigerian president (or head of state) may be subjective. Still, we want to analyze these head of states’ historical achievements and precedents for posterity’s sake.

Some political analysts still harbor the idea that Nigeria has never been blessed with visionary and transparent leaders. Still, we hope this list will prove them wrong as we seek to explore the most inspiring Nigerian leaders. (Hint: They are just three.). Let’s look at the best Nigerian presidents and heads of state without further ado.

List of the Best Nigerian President and Head of State

General Murtala Muhammed

Muritala Muhammed (November 8, 1938 – February 13, 1976)was Nigeria’s head of state in 1975. He led the country for less than 200 days, but Nigerians felt his impact during this period. He kicked out General Gowon, Nigeria’s 2nd Military leader, while he was away from the country. His ascendance into governance was characterized by readiness and transparency. In fact, his style of governance was so ‘avant-garde’ and unique that he had so many enemies.

He lived a spartan lifestyle. It was said that he never moved into the official government house at Dodan Barracks. He rarely moved around with entourage or security escorts or convoys, and this was one of the contributory factors to his assassination. He was a populist and an idealist. He introduced the word ‘fellow Nigerians’ to the political lexicon.

His achievements are:

Fixing a definite plan for return to civilian rule. He set this date on October 1, 1979.
He announced a new constitution committee chaired by Rotimi Williams in preparation for a return to civilian rule.
Setting up panels to investigate the asset of corrupt officials.
Creation of an additional seven more states through Ayo Irikefe’s panel.
Setting up a new Federal Capital Territory in Abuja in the central part of the country.
Retiring of corrupt public officials to sanitize the civil service and other government establishments.
He introduced a duumvirate pattern of government where the military would rule with civilians.
He emphasized the ‘Nigeria-first’ foreign policy. He backed the Soviet-supported Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, instead of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), due to South Africa’s support for the latter.

Unfortunately, he was assassinated at the age of 37 in 1976. He never lived to see his dream of a prosperous Nigeria come true.

Umaru Musa Yar’Adua

Yar’adua succeeded Olusegun Obasanjo in 2007 as the president of Nigeria. Though his term in office was cut short by death (again), he had so many remarkable achievements that have not been usurped by subsequent governments.

Here are the reasons he remains one of Nigeria’s best presidents.

He was the first president to declare his asset, pushing his drive for transparency and an integrity government.
He launched the Niger-Delta Amnesty Programme, which led to the temporary cessation of kidnapping and violence in the region; hundreds of youths were trained in entrepreneurial skills.
He started the dredging of the Niger River. This hasn’t been done in more than 30 years.
He maintained a non-interference in judicial activities stance. This facilitated the independence of the now-strangulated judiciary.
He completed more than 15 major federal roadways he inherited from the government of Obasanjo.

Olusegun Obasanjo

Fondly called OBJ, he had the rare privilege of ruling the country twice, in 1976 as a military leader and in 1999 as a legitimate president elected by the populace. He is widely considered the greatest president in Nigeria. Here are some of his achievements:

Establishing anti-corruption agencies (EFCC and ICPC) led to the arrest and trial of corrupt public figures and fraudsters.
He left a foreign reserve of more than 40 billion dollars. He met a foreign reserve of fewer than 4 billion dollars when he became president in 1999.
Debt relief of 18 billion. This made Nigeria debt-free.
He privatized the telecommunication industry, which led to its growth and expansion. Today more than 100 million Nigerians have a phone line.
He led a government of technocrats with brilliant minds like Soludo and Iweala. They made contributions to the growth of the economy.

Why does Nigeria have bad leaders?

Nigeria’s problem stems from leadership failure. The political class, led by the successive presidents of the country, has contributed little to improving the lives of the Nigerian citizenry. Nigerian presidents have the problem of failure to rise up to their responsibility. None of them has been able to present an exemplary leadership style (apart from the few listed above).

Another cause of Nigeria’s leadership crises can be attributed to the absence of Nigeria’s moral values, leading to the poverty of value-based leadership. The truth is that a bad or corrupt society will not be able to produce sincere, honest and responsible leaders. Nigeria has always ranked low in the Transparency International corruption perception index.

Nigeria also suffers from weak institutions, which fuels corruption. In the daily life of every Nigerian, greed, sharp practices and lust for wealth and luxury take the order of the day. Most Nigerian politicians can’t even manage their own homes properly. They take advantage of a corrupt and weak electoral process to steal their way to political offices. These leaders are always prepared to manipulate political institutions to have their way.

In Nigeria, political leaders are not elected or selected based on patriotic pedigree or transparent processes. They have no leadership qualities or competence. The electoral body (INEC) and the judiciary are morally bankrupt, hence incapable of managing the process of electing quality crops of political leaders.

Here’s how to solve the leadership crisis in Nigeria:

The different institutions involved in the election process must be empowered to be impartial and strictly adhere to the law. Those whose actions contradict the electoral act should be dealt with.
Nigeria needs strong institutions to promote social values and limit the behavior of the political class. Political elites tend to take advantage of weak institutions for their selfish interest. It is important to strengthen the institutions to work in accordance with the rule of law.
Parochial grassroots politics is one of the reasons for Nigeria’s leadership problem. This type of politics revolves around fraud, patronage and impunity. There is a need for a change. Politics at the grassroots should be upheld accountability and transparency.
Our educational system should be invested heavily in, developed and positively transformed. This is where future leaders inculcate the right leadership skills.

Read: How Much is the Nigerian President’s Salary

Effect of Bad Governance

Poor Economic Growth

Studies have already demonstrated and revealed that where there is poor handling of resources and maladministration of people in general, the economy of any nation will suffer. There are several examples. It is the responsibility of government to ensure the harmony, security, and well-being of its citizens.

When people in power redirect the goal to their own self-interest, resources are mismanaged, causing reputable investors to pull their investments, resulting in a scarcity of options to compensate for the losses. This is why Nigeria has been pushed to the sidelines. Nigeria, Africa’s so-called “giant,” is still an excellent example. Remember the good old days when the dollar exchange rate was equal to the Naira rate in Nigeria.

It reveals a lot about how much the country’s leadership has deteriorated. Massive unemployment rates, rising poverty, and other issues exist today that did not exist many years ago. Even the most valued mineral wealth aren’t worth a lot of money because the country’s terrible reputation has negated the gains.

Civilizational Collapse

In its most basic form, government was formed to bring about civilization. People are loathe continuing under the direction of dishonest leaders who are neither capable nor accountable, to say the least.

As previously said, the relationship between the government and citizens is based on trust. People get together to hand over their self-governing rights to people who can help them advance and safeguard their interests.

People or citizens have the right to peacefully protest against the government if certain leaders fail to meet expectations. Even in successful countries, this has always been and will continue for the foreseeable future. Citizens will no longer feel compelled to obey the rules of the land if those laws do not apply to the leaders.

Weak Political /Governmental Structures

Because of the ineptitude of leaders, there appears to be a shaky political system in the eyes of people both inside and outside the country. It does not reflect well on a country if it is unable to generate competent leaders who will support the government’s goals by encouraging social and economic progress.

The fact is that a country’s reputation is built not only on its natural resources, but also on its ability to manage those resources. It is terrible to note that, in these modern times, while discussing the world’s most renowned nations, virtually nobody will remember any African state. This is owing to a complete lack of trust among residents and non-stakeholders around the world that an African state is able to manage resources, let alone earning a place in international repute.