IF you were listing characteristics desirable in a leader, what would they be? Compassion, empathy, selflessness? They would be up there, for me. And if you asked me to name the traits that make someone unsuitable to be the chief lawmaker in a country, I would have to say that narcissism, intransigence and a desire to cling to power at all costs would be major red flags.
Why is it then that we are so often burdened with leaders who exhibit so many of the absolute worst traits that a person in a position of power could possess? The over-inflated yet fragile egos of politicians often take us to the brink, and it is those with the least power and influence that pay the price.
This is not a new phenomenon, and the annals of history are littered with political leaders and their willingness to trample everything that is good and decent to retain the reins of power or to shore up their position of privilege. I think now though with the 24-hour news cycle and instant availability of information through social media, we see this much more clearly. We can recognise the traits and see the consequences yet to unfold.
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At the extreme end of this is what we are witnessing right now in Ukraine. Here we see the devastating consequences of unchecked ego and toxic masculinity playing out on a global scale. If absolute power corrupts absolutely then it is little wonder that Mr Putin feels that the invasion of a sovereign nation is a course of action which he is entitled to take. Entitlement is key here – when there is no system of checks and balances, no dissenting voice with the ability to halt a course of action, then leaders can believe they are above the rule of law. And it is clear when you watch Putin’s statements that he is not hating this because, for him, this massages his ego as the big, macho world leader who is determined to win whatever the cost.
Many worried when Trump was in power that his ego too would spiral out of control with potentially similar consequences. What happened on Capitol Hill was terrifying enough and that, also, was all about his bruised ego, wounded pride. Who knows how much further it could have gone had sensible people not nipped it in the bud.
And here on these islands we too have a leader who seems to be governed by his own ego and his own self-interest. To be clear I am not equating Boris Johnson to Vladimir Putin, of course I’m not. But it was blindingly obvious to everyone who did not wilfully deceive themselves that a man of Boris Johnson’s character was destined to be engulfed in scandal.
A mixture of arrogance and incompetence that so often goes hand in hand with a private education is a disastrous combination, and when you add in compulsive lying you not only have a bad leader, you damage the whole system.
His ending of coronavirus restrictions early wasn’t about public health, it was timed to rescue his standing amongst his backbenchers who were plotting to oust him. It was about reclaiming his reputation as Boris the British Bulldog who faces down a worldwide pandemic and refuses to give in to it. It’s egotistical nonsense and alarming that policy can be based on one man’s obsession with his image.
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The inability to receive new facts and change your thinking accordingly, or even simply to say you got it wrong, has led us to the point where the UK Government will continue to actively damage the economy and force the least well off to pay. The cost-of-living crisis is going to hit so hard in the coming months as fuel bills skyrocket, inflation rises and National Insurance tax is hiked up. I am worried sick about how people will manage, and I’m angry because all of these could have been mitigated to varying degrees if decisions were based on facts rather than on saving face.
I have argued in Parliament, I have brought expert evidence forward to committees and presented irrefutable evidence of the ineffectiveness and criminal outcomes of government policy, yet rarely does this change the course of direction. Take the Nationalities and Borders Bill. The Tory government is set on a similar course of action to Australia despite evidence from there showing that it is costly, ineffective and leads to horrific human rights abuses, with catastrophic consequences particularly for children. The inability to see new evidence, take it on board and adjust accordingly is a toxic trait of ego that poisons political discourse.
We have a fit-and-proper-person test that must be met before someone can run a football club, but not a country or a political party. It seems to me that there must be a better way safeguard our institutions from those with a lust for power solely for their own ends. Leadership should be about doing what best serves those who most need us, not lining the pockets of pals and stroking the egos of sociopaths.
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