What makes a good president for the country?

In accordance with the Constitution of Sri Lanka, the President of the Republic of Sri Lanka is the Head of the State, the Head of the Executive and of the Government, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces

By Indika Nishan 

Election Committee Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya got straight to the point recently and stated that the next Presidential Election must be held between 15 November and 7 December. Based on the historical information, the 2019 Election will be the eighth Presidential Election in the country.   

In accordance with the Constitution of Sri Lanka, the President of the Republic of Sri Lanka is the Head of the State, the Head of the Executive and of the Government, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. 

Even though the 19th Amendment to the Constitution pruned certain powers and status of the Executive Presidency, the president still remains the single most dominant political office in the country. On the other hand, the office is regarded by the masses as the centre of power, authority and command.    

There is adequate time for political parties to nominate their candidate for the election. Some parties, however, have already begun a trial and error method of declaring their presidential candidate, just to get the public overview of candidates beforehand and test their probability of winning at the election. This practice has unavoidably wrapped the general public and the party followers in dilemma, confusion, and more noticeably in resentment.   

 A genuine political leader will love his country, its people, its culture and its heritage, and make a sincere effort to advance the whole country and its nation

This article does not intend to discuss any particular personality, who has expressed willingness to contest in the upcoming election. Rather this piece of writing aims at evaluating qualities one must possess to be the best fit for the highest position in the country. 

Given the current situation prevailing in the country, it is equally imperative for the general public to use the right yardstick in evaluating qualities of presidential candidates and use their franchise wisely and prudently at this critical juncture.   

There is no general consensus among people about what qualities in a president are more important. Certain qualities and character traits are situation driven. Nevertheless, there are commonly agreed and accepted character traits people usually look for in a presidential candidate. The list is not necessarily comprehensive, yet it will touch upon the key expectations of a political leader, who wish to be elected to the highest position in the country.    

1. A genuine lover of the country   

Nothing will make someone a better president or presidential candidate, unless they have a selfless and genuine love for the country and its people. The president will be the head of the country and will set an example for the rest of the leaders and masses. 

A genuine political leader will love his country, its people, its culture and its heritage, and make a sincere effort to advance the whole country and its nation. Such a leader will place his country before his personal agendas and short term political goals in the decision-making process.  

2. A strong vision for the country  

A president or a potential candidate must have a greater understanding of the status quo of the country, people’s aspirations and a clear vision for the future. They must possess capabilities of resolving short term problems and bringing the whole nation together under a clear long-term vision. 

A leader with a vision lives in his vision and inspires others to support and contribute towards achievement.  Such leaders are focused and possess the passion, strength and willpower to pursue long term goals and bring everyone together to support in achieving those goals.    

The next political leadership in Sri Lanka has to play a crucial role in balancing the relationship with the countries that have a growing interest in the region

Some of the vision statements set forth by leaders of emerging countries in the world convey an influential message to its people about the future of such countries.  

United Arab Emirates (UAE) vision 2021 aims to make the UAE among the best countries in the world by the Golden Jubilee of the Union. In order to translate the vision into reality, its pillars have been mapped into six national priorities, which represent the key focus sectors of government action in the coming years.  

As outlined by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the vision for Singapore is to embark on a new era of growth and become the world’s first Smart Nation. Leveraging on Internet of Things (IoT), becoming a Smart Nation entails the seamless connection of the whole of Singapore in order to transform the way we live, work and interact.  

Wawasan 2025 or Vision 2025 was introduced by Mahathir Mohamad in Malaysia. The vision calls for the nation to achieve a self-sufficient industrialised nation by the year 2025, encompasses all aspects of life, from economic prosperity, social wellbeing, educational world-class, political stability, as well as psychological balance.  

3. Character and personality  

The president is the representative of his own country and his nation. It is hence important that the person to be elected as president has a highly regarded character. 

This means that the prospective leader in the country must have admirable traits such as integrity, honesty, fairness, self-sacrifice, self-control and perseverance.   

Integrity is a character trait that has strong moral principles and core values. 

When someone has integrity, he adheres to his moral principles and core values whether or not he is being watched by other people.   

Honesty is not just being truthful, but being straightforward and trustworthy in all your actions, relationships and decisions.   

Fairness is a character trait that drives someone to make decisions based on what is considered the best course of action or outcome for all involved. A president of a country is the leader of the whole nation. Hence his decisions and actions during his tenure as the head of the country must be fair and unbiased.  

Self-sacrifice is by far one of the most important characteristics a political leader in a developing country must have. Only a leader sacrificing for his country and nation can navigate the country and its people from adversity to prosperity.  

A significant portion of a president’s time will inevitably be taken up by decision-making at various levels. Self-control is a required characteristic and a discipline that a leader needs in keeping his emotions controlled at all times. When a leader does not exercise self-control, their decisions are influenced by temptations and emotions. Such a leader will ruin his ability and skill in leading a country and a nation and lose the respect of its citizens.  

Leaders might have a vision, meticulously crafted strategies and a set of actions to reach such a vision. However, perseverance is a required trait to pursue a course of action steadily in the face of challenges, difficulties and discouragement.   

4. Accountability  

Most importantly, a president must understand that he or she is the head of the state and the leader of the country. A great leader will look out of the window and give credit to his people for positive outcomes. 

On the other hand, he will look in the mirror and take ownership and accountability for negative outcomes. In leading a country, a president must assume greater responsibilities for outcomes of not only his own decisions but also decisions made by other people below him. This is an important character trait which will distinguish a president from the rest of the people in the country.  

5. International affairs management  

The requisite for this particular characteristic has to be highlighted in the light of the geographical location of the country in the South Asian region. Sri Lanka, with its strategic location in the Indian Ocean and China’s maritime silk route has drawn an enormous interest of powerful as well as emerging economies in the world – India, China and the US.  

The next political leadership in Sri Lanka has to play a crucial role in balancing the relationship with the countries that have a growing interest in the region. Unless the matter is dealt with a prudent and non-aligned foreign policy by the new leadership, Sri Lanka being trapped in the political, security and economic struggle in the region is unavoidable.  

6. Great communicator  

Communication skill is one of the vital qualities a political leader must develop in order to effectively get his vision and policies across to the public during the presidential campaign. No matter how strong one’s vision for a country and underlying strategies are if you cannot communicate them to the general public and draw their support, the prospective leader is unlikely to succeed and win the hearts of the majority.  

Most importantly, a president must understand that he or she is the head of the state and the leader of the country. A great leader will look out of the window and give credit to his people for positive outcomes

Moreover, during tough times everyone’s eyes are on their leader and his reaction to the situation. Great political leaders with strong communication skills can comfort his people during hard times and encourage and strengthen them to rise above the situation.   

7. Crisis Management  

Crisis such as strikes and demonstrations by various parties and natural disasters are unavoidable adversities a political leader has to manage and deal with. They are sudden and unexpected and create unrest among masses. Political leaders are expected to play an extremely important role during a crisis and take complete charge of the situation. 

Sri Lanka has witnessed enough natural disasters, public unrests and epidemics throughout its history. Hence, crisis management skills are indispensable in discharging the duties and responsibilities of a president.  

8. Courage to make unpopular/tough decisions  

A political leader will greatly be judged by his policies and decisions. Millions of people’s lives will certainly be dependent on decisions made by one person. Understandably, critical decision-making would be an integral part of the president’s role as the head of the state and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the country. Some decisions are tough, critical and unpopular, but leaders are expected to make such calls with transparency, trust and integrity.   

9. Being a servant of the country and its people  

Last and most importantly, the president of the country must remind himself of the fact that he has been given the powers by his own citizens to serve the country and its nation. The position is vested with enormous powers, and it is expected that these powers will be used in the interest of the country and its nation. 

Further, the annual Budget of the country allocates a significant amount of money for the president’s office. The operation budget allocated for 2019 was Rs. 5.2 billion (out of a total allocation of Rs. 13.5 billion), which was approximately Rs. 14 million a day. No presidential candidate will tick all the boxes listed above or meet all the expectations of voters. 

On the other hand, the voters will not be able to evaluate all the characteristics of presidential candidates during the contesting time. Nonetheless, a candidate’s character, achievements during his childhood or at schools, his current position, experience, maturity and accomplishments will give an indirect indication as to how a potential candidate will perform during the tenure as the head of the state.  

(The writer is a finance professional and a freelance writer.)