Leaders are there to serve God's people

Leaders are there to serve God's people
By The Post
Tue 08 Nov. 2011, 14:00 CAT

An authority is needed to guide the energies of all towards the common good.

The government is the instrument by which people cooperate together in order to achieve the common good. Therefore, those who are elected or selected to lead us, to administer the affairs of our government must be people who are known for their honesty, ability, dedication and concern for the welfare of all.

What our people are seeking is genuine democracy in which the leaders are servants of the electorate and not their masters. And good governance only occurs when we have intelligent, honest and humble leaders who see politics as a vocation to serve the people. No one deserves to be in any government position unless they love their country more than themselves.

We are also aware that political leadership is an area of great importance for promoting justice, peace, development and community among all. We regard political leadership as a vocation, a way of building up society for the common good.

We are reminded in Romans 13:4 that the ruler is God's servant working for your own good. We are also reminded in Mark 9:35 that whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. And this fits in very well with the teaching of Telesphore Mpundu, the Archbishop of Lusaka, when he says that a political leader who forgets that leaders are there to serve God's people is offside. Leadership is about service. And the proper role of government is to serve citizens. It does this by creating opportunities that benefit all citizens without discrimination. Overall, citizens should be concerned with the way leaders lead them and administer public affairs.

A person chosen for political responsibility as a leader must remember that he is simply a servant or steward entrusted to offer humble service to others as opposed to owning power or the people he is serving. The owner of authority and people is God. Leaders, who are servants, are accountable to the people who chose them; they work for the common good.

And the Lord sets the example of leading by being a servant: "I, your Lord and Teacher, have just washed your feet. You, then, should wash one another's feet. I have set an example for you, so that you will do just what I have done for you. I'm telling you the truth: no slave is greater than his master, and no messenger is greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know this truth, how happy you will be if you put it into practice!" (John 13:14-17).

Clearly, we need saintly politicians who profoundly love their own people and wish to serve rather than to be served. Truly, leaders should exercise stewardship and uphold the common good. This is very important because the greatest challenge to bringing about justice and peace in our country consists in good administration of public affairs in politics and the economy.

The common good is the reason for the existence of political, social and economic institutions. It enables people to express commitment and concern for each other as well as attain the fullness of love. Common good calls upon all persons to contribute and commit themselves responsibly to building a peaceful and just society for all.

And the best way for a leader to fulfil his obligations to the electorate and indeed his obligations of justice and love is to contribute to the common good. Political office, and political power in general, must have as its aim the achievement of the common good. This is so because the whole reason for the existence of civil authority is the realisation of the common good. We are again reminded in Mark 12:31: "The second most important commandment is this: ‘Love your neighbour as you love yourself'…"

Our leaders should view themselves as being our representatives. And as such they should listen to the people, respect the people and work for the welfare of all the people. Leaders who consider themselves to be servants of the people rule with care.

Our leaders should not forget that in truth, their authority does not come from a document, some piece of paper, a constitution. It comes from the people who have the power to elect their leaders. It is the people who give them the authority. And that authority is given to them not to do wrong but to love and serve the people.

Political leadership is an effective way of serving others and working for integral development of one's country. And this being the case, political leadership should be exercised in the most honest and responsible way and within the limits of the moral order.

Our politicians often don't like to be reminded of the fact that they are our servants, and not our masters. And that they have a duty to do as we please and not as they want and must always hold themselves accountable to us.

They would like to see themselves as our bosses, our masters, the givers of everything we have, the dispensers of favours to us, the chief human resource managers whose duty is to employ and fire us as and when they wish. This is where their importance seems to lie. When you remind them that they are servants and not masters, you become enemies because you are challenging their authority, their power.

But this is the understanding, these are the values that brought us together, that made us friends before they got into power, before they assumed public office. And now that they want to move away from these values, these standards, they get annoyed when we remind them about who they are, about their role as servants of the people and start to call us all sorts of names. They forget that we are simply adhering to the values and standards that we once shared with them. They have moved on, they have changed but we are still where they left us and we haven't changed our values and our standards.

This is where the problem lies. This is where the differences stem from. We encourage other religious leaders to join Archbishop Mpundu in reminding our political leaders not to forget who they are and what their role is as servants of God's people. They need to hear this more often, so repeatedly. They may not like it but they have to continue to listen to this message if they are to serve the people in a manner that will truly serve and promote the common good.