The above quote aptly captures the essence of ‘morale’. If you have ever been part of a military or paramilitary outfit, you probably would understand this feeling too. For those who have had the opportunity of going through the National Youth Service Corp program, you will be familiar with the chant: “Morale!!!” With the expected response “HIGH!!!”. A resounding HIGH will depict the readiness of the platoon for any task of the day and this eagerness (or lethargy as the case may be) will reflect usually on the performance of such a platoon amongst others. The higher the morale, the better the performance. QED.
Morale is motivation; it is the ability of a team to inspire itself to victory, to have the self-conscious belief that whatever the assignment set before the team as an organ, victory is the only option. This is the firm belief that each individual entity and member of the team carries along with him/her. It is palpable, it has a substance to it, it is an energy that radiates and can readily be felt and more often than not, the morale of the squad is determined by its leadership.
Last week, I started a series on the Nigerian Army with a focus on the on-going war against the now dreaded Boko Haram sect, which I expect would be sustained over a period. War is not an uncommon phenomenon in human relations. Though undesirable, it has been a conscious part of human existence from time immemorial. Leaders, kings, queens, regents, presidents and heads of states have had to guide their armies through either victories, colossal losses or as Yakubu Gowon puts it: ‘no victor, no vanquished’ situations.
The common denominator or determinant of the outcome of such armies mostly is the attitude of the leader. The uncanny ability to inspire, motivate and boost the morale of the troops. The posture and demeanour of the Commander in Chief, the body language, the obvious dedication to the cause of victory and the unwavering care and support for the fighting forces.
The charismatic and clear messages sent out or broadcast to the army and the world, the surprise visits to the troops, sends a message of ‘esprit de corps’, oneness, confidence of the leader. The little gestures that tell the individual soldier that my president reposes confidence in me and will stop at nothing to ensure I return home safe or in the event that I don’t, that my memory will be honoured and my family will be catered for without hassle. These and a few more are the essentials that inspire the soldier and the army to fight for God and Country.
I do not need to bore you with the manner in which Kings like David, Alexander the great or Helen of Troy inspired their armies to victory or a confident outing. The difference between two prime ministers of Great Britain during the 2nd World War, namely Neville Chamberlain and Winston Churchill are quite as instructive. Chamberlain, a man described as one of the greatest reformers of his time, is more popularly remembered as the lily livered Prime Minister who sought through appeasement and pandering to Hitler’s whims and caprices to stop the war and was forced to resign in May 1940 after the disastrous Norwegian campaign, giving way to Winston Churchill.
Winston Churchill on the other hand (and I advise you read about him) took a different posture. I’d simply set out a quote from him that aptly describes his campaign against Nazi Germany here: “You ask, What is our policy? I will say; “It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us: to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.” You ask, What is our aim? I can answer with one word: Victory — victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival.”
This sums it up. The simple difference between men who possess the capacity to inspire the army to victory and those who don’t. That is what one prime-minister had and the other lacked and well, of course the outcome is now public knowledge.
The question for you my dear patient reader is: DOES GOODLUCK JONATHAN POSSESS THE CHARISMATIC CAPACITY TO INSPIRE THE NIGERIAN ARMY AND INDEED THE NATION TO VICTORY AGAINST #BOKOHARAM? Your guess is as good as mine. If you don’t have any opinion on this question yet, kindly do Google any of: “Goodluck Jonathan condemns Boko Haram”, or WHERE IS GWOZA SEF?- Goodluck Jonathan.
At some point you and I will have no choice but to elect a Commander-in-Chief who will be courageous enough to visit troops at the battle front. Whether that glorious dawn will come to light in 2015 or otherwise is your choice as well as mine to make. 2015 – 2019 is a mighty long time.
NB: My friend Captain Aliyu Musa is still Missing in Action, and over the week many more soldiers have gone missing in the Nigerian Army’s campaign for the soul of Bama. My prayers are with the Army. I advise that you add yours too, for Victory and the safe return of the boys.
#SupportOurTroops.
This is Nigeria.
Aiyé Kòótó interacts @topeatiba
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