The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Akinwunmi Adesina was rocked by a list of series of allegations by a whistleblower “believed to be concerned staff members of the organisation.”
In the 15 page whistleblower report that was leaked to the media early this year, there were several allegations made against him and his leadership of the organisation, most of these allegations fall under the umbrella of poor governance, impunity, personal enrichment and favouritism.
Adesina is the first Nigerian to be elected to head the helms of affair in the largest multilateral financial institution in Africa and among the top 5 in the world.
Adesina is a top Nigerian who previously served as Nigeria‘s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. Until he was appointed Minister in 2010, he was Vice President of Policy and Partnerships for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).
He was a man known for his charismatic mode of carriage and leadership, known for his charismatic way of speaking and dressing in his bow ties and suit, he is a Nigerian shinning on all front.
All these are an achievement that transcends personal glory, he is widely regarded as a national treasure. Still, all these were in jeopardy immediately he was accused of corruption and mismanagement in one of the most significant financial institutions in the world.
The Implications of his Accusations.
Adesina is presently in a financial and political world that transcends Nigeria and Africa as a continent even though the institution is meant to cater to the need of Africans.
Akinwumi Adesina is currently representing more than himself and more than a nation. The implications of his actions will always depict how the whole Africa continent is seen, and this made his exoneration something worth celebrating for the entire continent.
A man like himself being found guilty of accusations of this manner would have further worsened the reputation of the whole continent and put into question whether Nigeria and the African continent can provide good leadership when it matters.
Bad Reputation.
Nigeria and Africa bad reputation with leadership are one of the most talked-about topics in the world power and political circle. This is one of the reasons why Africans are subjected to extra-curricula scrutiny before trust is accorded to them to lead.
This lack of trust is the reason why the shareholders of the organisation insisted that Adesina should be subjected to further investigation by an independent panel after the Board Ethics Committee of the organisation cleared him of any wrongdoings.
It is essential that Nigerians and Africans at large must take the exoneration of Akinwumi Adesina as the kind of example and level of leadership that must we must aspire to attain and sustain overtime to repair the bad reputation that we currently share.
Finally, the exoneration of Akinwumi Adesina by the highly-rated independent panel is an excellent win for Nigeria and Africa at large in world politics. Nigeria has been explicitly in the bad news for a while now because of internet fraud perpetrated by some loud minorities.
This win is more than Adesina’s personal victory; it is a win for the continent, an achievement to further show the great leadership that Africa can produce.
This should also serve as a great inspiration for young Nigerians that good leadership is attainable in the country.
Congratulations to Akinwumi Adesina, we’re all proud of you.
