CONTENDERS RATING SCALE (2017/2018 Season): Predicting football mathematically

In the course of the 2012/2013 season, I propounded the Contenders Rating Scale to provide a platform through which football lovers around the globe are able to mathematically predict the teams that would be the top 5 finishers across 5 of Europe’s elite football leagues, namely; - English Premier League, Spanish La Lliga, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A and the French Ligue 1.

What is the Contenders Rating Scale (CRS): The CRS is a mathematical approach to predicting at least three teams that would have a top five finish in the major leagues across Europe.

Please note that for the purpose of this work, every team in consideration would be referred to as the Contenders.             Interestingly, with the CRS, you don’t have to guess the final team placement in your favourite league in vain, as the CRS would get you being a clairvoyant with at least 3 of the teams being correct.

The formula:

The CRS is mathematical, involving 5 sequential steps critical to one’s clairvoyance on the top 5 table standings in one’s favourite football season at the end of the season. These steps are as follows;

1. Know the top 5 teams of the football league that is being reviewed in each of the last 5 years/seasons prior to the season that is being analysed. Thus the top 5 teams in the 2016/2017, 2015/2016, 2014/2015, 2013/2014 and 2012/2013 football seasons;

2.  A 5 mark/point scale is credited to the teams based on their final league table placement. This is illustrated below

      i.            The 1^st placed teams will have 5 marks (mks)

    ii.            The 2^nd placed team will have 4 mks.

  iii.            The 3^rd placed team will have 3 mks.

  iv.            The 4the placed team will have 2 mks.

    v.            The 5^th placed team will have 1 mk.

3. The marks obtained by every team in the five years evaluated under study are summed up to arrive at the cumulative score.

4. The teams with the top 5 cumulative scores would make up the contenders.

5. A minimum of 3 of these 5 teams – in no particular order of cumulative points accumulated – would at the end of the season constitute the Contenders Rating Table for the respective season (2017/2018 in this case) that is being reviewed.

The Elite Seasons:

As earlier noted, the 5 leagues for analyses are the English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A, French Ligue 1 and German Bundesliga

The English Premier League:  

2016/2017 Barclays Premier League (YEAR 5)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Chelsea	1st	5
Tottenham Hotspur	2nd	4
Man City	3rd	3
Liverpool	4th	2
Arsenal	5th	1

2015/2016 Barclays Premier League (YEAR 4)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Leicester City	1st	5
Arsenal	2nd	4
Tottenham Hotspur	3rd	3
Man City.	4th	2
Man Utd.	5th	1

2014/2015 Barclays Premier League (YEAR 3)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Chelsea	1st	5
Man City	2nd	4
Arsenal	3rd	3
Man Utd.	4th	2
Tottenham	5th	1

2013/2014 Barclays Premier League (YEAR 2)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Man City	1st	5
Liverpool	2nd	4
Chelsea	3rd	3
Arsenal	4th	2
Everton	5th	1

2012/2013 Barclays Premier League (YEAR 1)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Man Utd.	1st	5
Man City	2nd	4
Chelsea	3rd	3
Arsenal	4th	2
Tottenham Hotspur	5th	1

With the preceding years analysed, the following are notable highlights from the Contenders Rating Cumulative table below:

·         8 teams had a top 5 finish in one or more years in the last 5 seasons

·         The top 5 teams from the cumulative marks/scores obtained are Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Man Utd.

·         At least 3 of the aforementioned 5 teams would have a top 5 finish

 THE CONTENDERS RATING CUMULATIVE TABLE (Table E6)

Teams	Yr. 5 Scores	Yr. 4 Scores	Yr. 3 Scores	Yr. 2 Scores	Yr. 1 Scores	Cumulative Scores
Manchester City	3	2	4	5	4	18
Chelsea	5	-	5	3	3	16
Arsenal	1	4	3	2	2	12
Tottenham Hotspur	4	3	1	-	1	9
Man Utd.	-	1	2	-	5	8
Liverpool	2	-	-	4	-	6
Leicester City	-	5	-	-	-	5
Everton	0	0	0	0	1	1

Spanish La Liga: 

With the Spanish La Liga analysed, observations from the forthcoming 2017/2018 season are as follows:

·         8 teams had a top 5 finish in one or more years in the last 5 seasons

·         The projected top 5 teams in line with the Cumulative Table are Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Sevilla and Valencia

·         At least 3 of these teams as exuded by table S6 below would have a top 5 finish at the end of the 2017/2018

2016/2017 Spanish La Liga (YEAR 5)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Real Madrid	1st	5
Barcelona	2nd	4
Atletico Madrid	3rd	3
Sevilla	4th	2
Villarreal	5th	1

2015/2016 Spanish La Liga (YEAR 4)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Barcelona	1st	5
Real Madrid	2nd	4
Atletico Madrid	3rd	3
Villarreal	4th	2
Athletic Bilbao	5th	1

2014/2015 Spanish La Liga (YEAR 3)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Barcelona	1st	5
Real Madrid	2nd	4
Atletico Madrid	3rd	3
Valencia	4th	2
Sevilla	5th	1

2013/2014 Spanish La Liga (YEAR 2)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Atletico Madrid	1st	5
Barcelona	2nd	4
Real Madrid	3rd	3
Athletic Bilbao	4th	2
Sevilla	5th	1

2012/2013 Spanish La Liga (YEAR 1)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Barcelona	1st	5
Real Madrid	2nd	4
Atletico Madrid	3rd	3
Valencia	4th	2
Real Sociedad	5th	1

THE CONTENDERS RATING CUMULATIVE TABLE (Table 6)

Teams	Yr. 5 Scores	Yr. 4 Scores	Yr. 3 Scores	Yr. 2 Scores 5	Yr. 1 Scores	Cumulative Scores
Barcelona	4	5	5	4	5	23
Real Madrid	5	4	4	3	4	20
Atletico Madrid	3	3	3	5	3	15
Sevilla	2	-	1	1	-	4
Valencia	-	-	2	-	2	4
Villarreal	1	2	-	-	-	3
Athletic Bilbao	-	1	-	2	-	3
Real Sociedad	-	-	-	-	1	1

NB: 8 teams had a top 5 finish in one or more years in the last 5 Spanish La Liga seasons (2016/2017 – 2012/2013)

The German Bundesliga:

The following are observations from the proceeding 6 tables to be discussed on the Bundesliga Contenders Rating Table:

·         9 teams had a top 5 finish in one or more years in the last 5 seasons (2016/2017 – 2012/2013)

·         At least 3 of  Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Schalke 04, Borussia Monchengladbach and VFL Wolfsburg would have a top 5 finish at the end of the 201/2018 season.

2016/2017 Bundesliga (YEAR 5)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Bayern Munich	1st	5
RB Leipzig	2nd	4
Dortmund	3rd	3
Hoffenheim	4th	2
FC Koln	5th	1

2015/2016 Bundesliga (YEAR 4)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Bayern Munich	1st	5
Dortmund	2nd	4
Leverkusen	3rd	3
Borussia Monchengladbach	4th	2
Schalke 04	5th	1

2014/2015 Bundesliga (YEAR 3)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Bayrn Munich	1st	5
Wolfsburg	2nd	4
Borussia Monchengladbach	3rd	3
Bayer Leverkusen	4th	2
Augsburg	5th	1

2013/2014 Bundesliga (YEAR 2)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Bayern Munich	1st	5
Borussia Dortmund	2nd	4
Schalke 04	3rd	3
Bayer Leverkusen	4th	2
VFL Wolfsburg	5th	1

 2012/2013 Bundesliga (YEAR 1)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Bayern Munich	1st	5
Dortmund	2nd	4
Bayer Leverkusen	3rd	3
Schalke 04	4th	2
Freiburg	5th	1

THE CONTENDERS RATING CUMULATIVE TABLE (Table G6) 

Teams	Yr. 1 Scores	Yr. 2 Scores	Yr. 3 Scores	Yr. 4 Scores 5	Yr. 5 Scores	Cumulative Scores
Bayern Munich	5	5	5	5	5	25
Borussia Dortmund	3	4	-	4	4	15
Schalke 04	-	1	-	3	2	6
Borussia Monchengladbach	-	2	3	-	-	5
Vfl Wolfsburg	-	-	4	1	-	5
Hoffenheim	2	-	-	-	-	2
Koln	1	-	-	-	-	1
Augsburg	-	-	1	-	-	1
FC Freiburg	-	-	-	-	1	1

The Italian Seria A:

The following are observations from the 6 tables to be discussed on the league in view:

·         9 teams had a top 5 finish in one or more years in the last 5 seasons (2016/2017 – 2013/2014

·         The top 5 teams in line with the cumulative marks/scores obtained are g. Juventus, Roma, Napoli, Fiorentina & Atalanta

·         At least 3 of  the earlier mentioned 5 teams would have a top 5 finish at the end of the 2017/2018 season

2016/2017 Serie A (YEAR 5)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Juventus	1st	5
Roma	2nd	4
Napoli	3rd	3
Atalanta	4th	2
Lazio	5th	1

2015/2016 Serie A (YEAR 4)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Juventus	1st	5
Napoli	2nd	4
Roma	3rd	3
Inter	4th	2
Fiorentina	5th	1

2014/2015 Serie A (YEAR 3)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Juventus	1st	5
Lazio	2nd	4
Roma	3rd	3
Fiorentina	4th	2
Napoli	5th	1

2013/2014 Serie A (YEAR 2)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Juventus	1st	5
AS Roma	2nd	4
Napoli	3rd	3
Fiorentina	4th	2
F.C. Internationale	5th	1

2012/2013 Seria A (YEAR 1)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Juventus	1st	5
Napoli	2nd	4
Milan	3rd	3
Fiorentina	4th	2
Udinese	5th	1

THE CONTENDERS RATING CUMULATIVE TABLE (Table I6) 

Teams	Yr. 1 Scores	Yr. 2 Scores	Yr. 3 Scores	Yr. 4 Scores 5	Yr. 5 Scores	Cumulative Scores
Juventus	5	5	5	5	5	25
Roma	4	3	3	4	-	14
Napoli	3	4	1	3	-	11
Fiorentina	-	1	2	2	2	7
Atalanta	2	-	-	-	4	6
Lazio	1	-	4	-	-	5
Inter	-	2	-	1	-	3
Milan	-	-	-	-	3	3
Udinese	-	-	-	-	1	1

The French Ligue 1:

In rounding off the Contenders Rating Scale League analysis across Europe, the French Ligue 1 would be discussed in a similar fashion as the 4 leagues earlier brought to the fore.

2016/2017 Ligue 1 (YEAR 5)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Monaco	1st	5
Paris Saint-Germaine	2nd	4
Nice	3rd	3
Lyon	4th	2
Marseille	5th	1

2015/2016 Ligue 1 (YEAR 4)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Paris Saint-Germaine	1st	5
Lyon	2nd	4
Monaco	3rd	3
Nice	4th	2
Lille	5th	1

2014/2015 Ligue 1 (YEAR 3)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Paris Saint Germain	1st	5
Lyon	2nd	4
Monaco	3rd	3
Marseille	4th	2
St Etienne	5th	1

2013/2014 Ligue 1 (YEAR 2)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Paris Saint Germain	1st	5
AS Monaco	2nd	4
Lille	3rd	3
St. Etienne	4th	2
Lyon	5th	1

 2012/2013 Ligue 1 (YEAR 1)

Teams	Positions	Marks
Paris Saint Germain	1st	5
Marseille	2nd	4
Lyon	3rd	3
Nice	4th	2
St. Etienne	5th	1

THE CONTENDERS RATING CUMULATIVE TABLE (Table F6) 

Teams	Yr. 5 Scores	Yr. 4 Scores	Yr. 3 Scores	Yr. 2 Scores 5	Yr. 1 Scores	Cumulative Scores
Paris Saint Germain	4	5	5	5	5	24
Monaco	5	3	3	4	-	15
Lyon	2	4	4	1	3	14
Nice	3	2	-	-	2	7
Marseille	1	-	2	-	4	7
Lille	-	1	-	3	-	4
St. Etienne	-	-	1	2	1	4

The following observations are drawn from the tabular analysis above:

·         7 teams had a top 5 finish in one or more years in the last 5 seasons (2016/2017 – 2012/2013

·         The top 5 teams in line with the cumulative marks/scores obtained are PSG, Monaco, Lyon, Nice, Marseille, Lille and St. Etienne

·         3 of  the earlier mentioned 5 teams would have a top 5 finish at the end of the 2017/2018 season

Disclaimer: The Contenders Rating Scale does not predict the league winners but ONLY a minimum of 3 of the top 5 finishers in the 5 football leagues in discuss.

Make That Move, Give!

Giving is an action

It magnets rains of blessings

To one beyond one's imagination.

Giving is a choice

Executed with love, humility and respect

For the individual in receipt of it.

Giving is as beautiful as the rainbow

To the individual who appreciates it wholeheartedly

Regardless of the weight of the GIVING

The effects of Giving, a whirlwind that

Gets blessings on Goal, sweeping the Giver off his or her feet

The weight of its blessings

Not defined by time nor its approach

But the sincerity of purpose in the GIVING

The blessings of GIVING

As nourishing as the honey from a swarm of bees

Its speed faster than a cheetah 

Giving is human

Its blessings, so heavenly

Make that move, GIVE!

Edging Towards a Robust Nigeria Economy vis-a-vis Import Substitution Strategy

No Man is an Island:

To my mind, The saying,’ No Man is an Island’ resonates why foreign relationship and interaction among countries of the world, especially in the economic realm, takes place as all nations are uniquely and differently blessed with resources, especially material and natural resources.

Whilst human resources are easily sourced e.g. through the academic exposure of nationals to the right environment abroad, thereby being equipped with the right skillset to significantly contribute to the home economy, resources aren’t met with ease when not available in the home country.

To ensure the available of resources not locally sourced, international economic relationship, through foreign trade comes into play.

The importation of goods and services is an important tool in international trade, with the exporting country (seller) the more productive country, whilst the importing (buyer) is most times considered productive when the goods imported are primary products or input necessary in furthering production.

The Balance of trade for example is a very crucial tool to monitor the capabilities of a country’s international trade as it is the difference between her export and import.

Bringing these home, with the challenges experienced in Nigeria, the sharp decline in the purchasing power of her currency -  the Naira – as well as the growing poverty levels and sufferings of Nigerians negates the era of Change majority of the populace had longed for and voted with so much enthusiasm. As at 2014, the exchange rate of Naira to USD was N180, two years down the line, it is N490.

Citeris Paribus:

Citeris paribus, with a Nation’s annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) being the sum total of C + I + G + (X – M), where C represents consumer spending; I, capital investment and G, government spending, as well as X being export and M, Import the summation of these puts the icing on the cake on why the Nigerian economy is at this time very bleak.

From these 5 indices, Government spending has dwindled overtime as evident in the inability of over 15 states to pay the salaries of their workers, as well as the declined Capital Investment and trade deficits experienced over the years, as evident in a host of firms leaving the shores of Nigeria to Ghana since 2009.

Regardless of these, my thought on the improvement of the Nigerian economy is hinged on her having an export driven economy where common needs like toothpick, food supplies, especially  Rice, vehicle tyres, sleepers and electronics etc. are locally produced at home through the encouragement of Foreign Investment into the country.

According to tradingeconomics.com, “Imports to Nigeria increased 60.4 percent year-on-year to NGN 774998 million in September of 2016, the biggest rise since July of 2013 as a weaker currency lifted import prices”.

More so, popular newspaper, guardian stated that Nigeria has lost its status as the aviation hub in West Africa to Ghana primarily due to the 100% increase in the cost of Aviation fuel – Jet A1 – in Nigeria. Other reasons by venturesafrica include, scarcity of Aviation fuel, devaluation of the Naira and unfriendly government policies. The case of unfriendly government policies is not a surprise, as Nigeria is presently placed 169 out of a possible 190 countries in the Ease of Doing Business Economic Ranking by The World Bank.

According to the World Bank, “a high ease of doing business ranking means the regulatory environment is more conducive to the starting and operation of a local firm”

 Import Substitution Industrialization:

Pondering through the way forward for Nigeria and her economy is a hurricane task, as driving in the right investors in the right numbers with the right capital is highly dependent on her treating the headaches encountered in the investment climate.

According to the vanguard, “statistics obtained from the 2010 annual report by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) shows that the total foreign capital inflow into the Nigerian economy in 2010 was $5.99 billion. The record shows that that FDI represents, 78.1 percent drop from $3.31 billion in 2009. Analysts attributed the decline in FDI to the increasing rate of insecurity in the country as well as infrastructural decay”.

No Foreign Investor puts in Capital into an economy without reaping in good time. As an investor into Nigeria, cost of goods and services are usually on the high side due to what I call ‘Price Surge Determinants (PSDs)”.

Encouraging the right investors into the country increases exports and significantly reduces imports, thereby achieving a favourable blance of trade (Trade Surplus), thereby strengthening the Naira against the dollar and other currencies, especially those of Nigeria’s trade partners.

The PSDs include high cost of vehicle maintenance and transportation of goods due to bad road network, unfavourable tax system, poor security, poor infrastructure and social amenities, high cost of rents and little or no incentives by the Government to lure investors into the country.

To counter these PSDs which usually make the prices of goods and services very expensive to the common man, the government must provide the following:

·         Significant improvement in the power sector;

·         Easing and reducing the processes involved in documentation

·         The availability of motorable roads, especially in the rural areas – thereby easing the movement of raw materials from sourced locations to the concerned firms/production location;

·         Strengthened local banking system with favourable interest rates to encourage borrowing from Local Banks;

·         Acceleration of residency permits by foreign employees of the foreign investing company,

·         Provision of a minimum of 3 years tax holidays, as well as an efficient and realistic tax system;

·         Availability of social amenities like good and affordable hospitals/schools with the best facilities thereby discouraging hospital tourism abroad

·         Efficient security system, low crime rate

In conclusion, the raw material availability and human resource potentials among Nigerians, as well as her huge population among other factors is a propelling force to the Nigerian Government leaving no stones unturned at ensuring the economy of Nigeria is made competitively viable in the global economy.

It is high-time, impossibility became a banned word in all facets of government activities, as making the impossible possible got Qatar, Abu-Dhabi amongst other great nations where they are.

Think Investment, Activate in Nigeria should be the drive to encouraging Foreign Direct Investment vis-à-vis Import Substitution approach.

THE MAGICIAN PRESIDENT

What is Magic? According to freedictionary.com, magic is the art or practice of using charms, spells, or rituals to attempt to produce supernatural effects or control events in nature.

In reference to the above, “The Magician President” is an individual who significantly lives up to the dictates and promises of his manifesto, having exercised a productive control and utilization of resources at his disposal to the good of the citizens and country, indeed the supernatural effect.

Visionary Presidents have one thing in mind; the core essence of leading being to leave behind a legacy for subsequent leaders to build upon which is why the need for a significant meet of set goals vis-à-vis the manifesto cannot be overemphasized.

Decoding MAGICIAN (The Wand Effect)

In order to have a realistic approach to this work, the word MAGICIAN, was decrypted with an acronym which could be inferred to be the wand effect of the Magician President.

Acronymically, these are:

M – Manages the affairs of his State/Country efficiently. Successful leaders exude the zeal to, at the end of their tenure, freely adjudge their manifesto which is the Key Performance Index (KPI) to good governance

A – Attention to details is smart

G – Guards the sovereignty of his country with passion, as well as the interest of citizens home and abroad. This is necessary in view of him or her being the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces

I – Inspires the led and other nations of the world, due to notable successes in his/her approach to governance

C – Compares his country with more successful countries in a pragmatic and healthy manner through benchmarking, with a view to consistently drive social and economic improvement in measurable and realistic terms

I – Innovativeness. Asides being an innovative president, he or she must ensure the environment is friendly to foster innovation by all in the country, as this indeed would foster economic and social development

A – Attracts businesses (especially Foreign Direct Investment). This is achieved when the business environment (policies, facilities and amenities) are conducive and ‘self promoting’ to have investors left with only the choice to invest in the country

N – Never-Says-Never. Naturally an improvement centric leader, frowning at mediocrity and accepting tenacity, nothing short of the best

From the above, a magician president, is a democratic leader who is able to turn around the fortunes of the state he or she leads with the aim of leaving the State (Country) better off than what it was before he or she was elected president and also leaving behind a legacy that would serve as a yardstick with which subsequent presidents would be judged and made to improve upon.

MATERIALISING THE MAGICIAN ATTRIBUTES:

In bringing to life the attributes of the Magician President, such leader must have:

·         A sound manifesto: Every president need to have an intelligently crafted manifesto filled with realism that states his ambitions and plans for the state in an unambiguous manner. The manifesto must be realistic, lack of deceits and should be one that would show enough drive and passion for development of the nation while also retaining the core values of the nation. The manifesto is the steering to a successful government, as it drives the government to achieve its promises. A manifesto formulated with deceit and unrealistic promises, primarily to win power is the bedrock to a failed government.

·         Trustworthiness: Strong personality/ charisma. A ‘magician president’ must possess a reliable, strong personality that his followers can look up to

·         Tact: This attribute is a given for all leaders looking to make a mark. Knowing how to manage situations is very important. As a leader, one needs to be calm and calculated before making any move because it may save the nation from a lot of economic upheavals

·         Good strong intellect: Although it may seem irrelevant for one to become a magician president he needs to be a person of high intellect, sound education and good experience because all these qualities would come in to bear during the course of any presidential reign

·         Vocal dexterity. Also necessary is proper representation of his nation in the global space. A president needs to be a person of choice words. Words though small are of great value and importance because they paint a picture of inner thoughts. It is also important to have good representation in the manner of a spokesperson to handle all media and press briefings. The appointment of the spokesperson should be painstakingly carried-out.

·         Man management: Another very important quality - people management skills. This is embodied in the phrase ‘people person’. The ability to keep others around him properly motivated and grounded at all times is a good quality any good leader should possess in order to achieve set goals. This also translates in the president being able to transform the mindset of the people leaving them stronger and better mentally than before the assumption of office,

·         External relations: Another very important quality needed is the ability to maintain good international relationship with other nations. No nation is an island on its own, it is necessary to maintain a good relationship with other neighboring nations as this shows an openness to development and foreign investment which is tantamount to economic growth at all levels,

·         Firmness: A leader should also be firm and be known to stand for what he/she believes in; because all over the world a lot of opinions and allegiances may sway the decision of a leader,

·         Exemplary followership: it is said that for one to be a good leader one has to first be a good follower as well; this is a necessary quality of any good leader. He/ she must be willing to teach and be taught.

It cannot be over stressed that in spite of all the above mentioned qualities it is also paramount for such a president to show consistency in action, policy formation and decision making without any form of bias or sentiment. Margaret Thatcher of Great Britain, Nelson Mandela of South Africa and Barack Obama of USA are good examples of leaders who have been known through time to exhibit one or more of such qualities.

 THE VENOMS

The venom to good governance are challenges that befall any government, especially when not prepared to counter them before, in the course and after the tenure of office.

·         godfatherism,

·         greed,

·         sentimentalism, tribalism and nepotism as against having the best hands for the job,

·         lack of proper communication channels between the leaders and masses,

·         poor attitude of backup advisers and policy makers,

·         low intellect and narrow scope of knowledge on the part of the leader,

·         limited experience of the leader,

·         lack of established government parastatals to handle both economic and political demographics,

·         unpatriotism,

·         unfavourable political situations in most countries,

·         bureaucratic nature of today’s society,

·         absence of proper framework to boost quality of service delivery,

·         corruption,

·         external influences on decisions and policies by more powerful and influential members of society, as well as foreign nations

Proactive steps must be employed to combat these venoms, as its existence speedily diffuse to all quarters and element of government, thereby gradually leading to governance failures.

Asides these aforementioned points, the challenges (educational and employment) faced by the skyrocketing youth population in the society today makes good leadership a stringent priority, as the youth are the leaders of tomorrow.

MAGICIAN PRESIDENT SUCCESSES:

The bigger picture to this work are the successes credited to a Magician President, as these would have the country being the centre of attraction and reference point to the economic advancement. A handful of these successes are as follows:

·         Widespread political stability and economic development,

·         Good quality education at all levels and tiers of government (comprising the private and secondary schools). Also encompassing favourable literacy levels,

·         Ability of the government to adapt and take full advantage of trending opportunities taking the world by storm (e.g. technological advancement),

·         Strong per capita income and favourable/surplus budget, as well as trade surplus being a norm,

·         Job creation and ease of entrepreneurship opportunities.

·         The availability of social amenities and infrastructural facilities (good roads, efficiently equipped hospitals, power consistency and availability) are pivotal, as these are incentives needed to encourage FDI’s to not just consider investing in the country but seeing investment as a must and no-brainer,

·         High life expectancy,

·         Low emigration,

·         Low crime,

·         High and efficient security,

·         Zero corruption tolerance.

The Magician President succeeds not because he is smart or knows it all but due to his or her passion at having the future of his or her country in his heart, consciousness to be surrounded by the best possible team with the right skill set, knowledge and exposure to bring to bear the yearnings of the people, whilst never contemplating the need to secure a bright future for many generations yet unborn because it is just what it is, the usual and in such not so much of a big deal.

To the Magician President, leadership successes is centred on achievements, possibly beyond the manifesto being a manifestation of the President’s “magicianism”  to have his or her accomplishments subconsciously entrenched  in the heart of the citizens.

Conclusively, talk is never cheap to the Magician President but very expensive, as all plans and expectations to widely move the nation forward are carefully and consciously selected, reviewed and deemed realistic to implement before and whilst leading the country.


Written by Taiwo, Kehinde Oluwaseyi and Elame Osigbemhe.