THOUGHTS AND MINDS ON LEADERSHIP FOR FUTURE YOUTH by TUN MAHATHIR

“We must be aware and know what is in us

before we transform ourselves…” 

Tun Mahathir, honorable former Prime Minister began his speech sharing his thoughts and minds to over 1,000 youth at “Bicara Minda Bersama YABhg Tun Mahathir – Transformasi Kepimpinan Belia: Meniti Cabaran Wawasan 2020 in PWTC yesterday.

LEADERSHIP ACCORDING TO TUN...

1. There are opinions that leaders boosted their positions by their staunch supporters to a more glorify and powerful status. There are leaders who assume that their supporters undertake the task to raise their leaders to a higher and more powerful position.
    
2. Therefore, it is wrong for leaders to manipulate their supporters as tools to achieve their dreams and self-positioning. Leaders are responsible to their followers as their preferences.
    
3. Leaders must understand a country’s and her nation’s aspiration and development. They must be able to position its nation to a higher status. A nation progress or regress are associates with leaders.
    
4. Incompetent leaders, do not understand their responsibilities. To choose a leader, we need to know  their leadership talent and a leader in one era is not necessary suitable for another age and they must be able to understand circumstances changes.

Who are those prominent leaders? 

1. Deng Xiaoping, the architect of developed China with his famous phrase, “Do not care if the cat is black or white, what matters is it catches mice” has positioned China to be the richest country in the world with its reserved todate summing to 3 trillion USD as compared to US with 10.3 trilion deficit. Unlike  Mao Zedong or commonly named as Chairman Mao, eventhough he is an effectual guerilla leader but he does not understand the country's development, trapped within the communist ideology, not prioritizing economic growth and wealth of the people. During his reign, Mao failed to develop his country and for years China was in a backward state. Mao wins the war but viewed in a fly-developed countries, and Deng Xiaoping camps to make the richest country in the world.
    
2. Above all, Holy Prophet Muhammad s.a.w is the most successful leader in history who transformed the Arabs from jahiliyah to civilised nations and his leadership established civilisation.
    
3. Tsar, Peter the Great has undertook extensive reforms in an attempt to reestablish Russia as a great nation. during his reign. Although he proved to be an effective leader, Peter was also known to be cruel and tyrannical.

WHAT TUN HAS TO SAY TO FUTURE LEADERS

• In the past, in monarchy system people did not talk about freedom and they have no rights to politics as  it is not something the government allowed for the public. Today, in the era of freedom started from French revolution, a translation to the growing independence where anything is permissible.
• Leaders must be competent to understand the good and bad thus they must be able to distinguish between good and bad of freedom and not duplicate without evaluating.
• Youth leaders will train to prepare themselves to achieve the vision 2020 towards a developed country with our own way.
• Youth leaders, must understand the sources of the changes and ask whether there are values to the nation. They should train themselves to study and analyse.
• Finally, when a community grows, it is important to have a leader. Without good leadership, an indefinable nation direction will lead them to split and weak. Thus they will be destroyed.