Leaders and Sycophants

Yemeni mp

Ahmed Saif Hashed

I am not one to easily admire my leader. I hold a profound disdain for the hypocrisy of leaders. I neither flatter nor bear false witness. I do not fall in love with my leader at first glance; I reassess and reevaluate repeatedly. I despise sycophants, opportunists, and those who seek to exploit. I do not offer praise or lean towards flattery except to the extent that a leader deserves it, to the degree that they inspire in me admiration and awe, and reflect credibility, humility, and selflessness.

I do not seek to exaggerate or idealize; I do not expect perfection from leaders. Instead, I seek the best within the realm of possibility, not the impossible. I do not overstate the ideal I pursue. I understand the flaws and shortcomings of humanity and recognize that the pursuit of perfection or a pure ideal is a quest beyond impossibility, a notion that does not exist, even in the form of a prophet or an angel.

I am not nihilistic; I strive to find excuses for others, to understand their reasons, and to seek even in the wicked some virtues and remnants of conscience that many may overlook. Everything in this existence seems relative to me, even truth and existence itself.

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Yet today, we endure an even worse and more catastrophic reality. The corrupt are imposed upon us as leaders, presidents, and managers. They throw their contracts, identities, and sticky desires in the face of our purity; our sincerity and our quest for justice. They impose upon us their foul outcomes, their more putrid corruption, and their ignorance that surpasses ignorance itself, leveraging their power to extort and humiliate us regarding our rights, exploiting our needs, destitution, and poverty in a desire to turn us into mere gloves and puppets, devoid of awareness, will, or life. Then, without shame or embarrassment, they hurl at us the falsehoods and defamatory claims that we are the ones extorting them. What horrors we endure!

Every day, as you navigate a reality as rotten as the one we live in, with corruption more lethal than plague and war, it surrounds you from all directions. It blocks the doors of God and the paths of escape and salvation. It seals every outlet and road, weighing heavily upon you with burdens greater than mountains, leaving you without a strategy, turning every possibility into an impossibility. In such a state, you gather the fragments of your patience from its farthest reaches, little more than to imagine yourself devouring your own hair and armpits.

* * *

Today, the corrupt have become leaders, and those who follow are tenfold worse than their predecessors. The pandemic of corruption is a calamity; only those more corrupt and greater in their depravity will protect and empower the corrupt. The great corruption now shapes policies and enforces them, meticulously orchestrating its phases step by step. Corruption has become a ruler, entrenched with an even greater resolve; it has become a milieu, an environment.

In the past, corruption would tremble at your pointed finger, shy away if you cast it a mere glance. But now, corruption has grown monstrous, terrifying, and wide in its invasion. It is an unstoppable current, a powerful system shielded by authority, dominance, and the harsh realities of life.

Corruption now boasts exceptional leaders, and authority has become an extension of their hands. Wherever you turn, you find corruption gaping at you like a predatory maw. If you do not approach it, it comes to you, feral and fierce, on all fours. The two options before you are equally grim, a choice between calamities. In this land, corruption has become a trial akin to fate.

The system of corruption now commands, dictates, and holds the final word in all matters, great and small. The overwhelming corruption in this afflicted land, with its leaders, has assumed absolute power and dominion. It is oppression and tyranny, more brutal and ruthless than ever before.

* * *

The one I admired most during my time at the military academy was Colonel Ahmed Saleh Elawa from Shabwa. I found him to be an exceptional leader, full of integrity and awareness, embodying a high level of responsibility. He did not impose his personality but rather led with wisdom, humility, and charisma. His wisdom, credibility, courage, vitality, and charm resonated deeply.

Ahmed Saleh Elawa was a seasoned military and educational leader, possessing a strong and captivating presence that earned our admiration and affection. He instilled in us a sense of self-worth, confidence, courage, and personal strength. His powerful voice still echoes in my memory as he urged us: “Student, take pride in yourself… lift your head… you are a leader.” I admired him greatly, convinced he was the most deserving to lead an army that deserved a leader of his caliber.

He possessed a remarkable leadership capability and garnered respect from those he led. Years later, I heard he was neglected and that this exceptional leader was shattered by failures. They said he had fallen into a psychological state, leaving behind a world of failures. Oh, my country! Your loyal and capable men end up in madness and despair or in ruins, while many trivial individuals, unworthy of their positions, seize high responsibilities, leading you into wars, chaos, and widespread tragedies.

* * *

Our unit was the first infantry, comprising three infantry companies, overseen by Lieutenant Abdulraqeb Thabit, who also trained us in tactics and graduated top of his eighth class. I aspired to be like him, the top of my tenth class. I admired him because he leaned towards persuasion and understanding, avoiding the humiliating brutality that wounds feelings and undermines human dignity, as some of his peers did, all at the expense of raising awareness and elevating its value.

Today, I no longer hear of this leader; instead, I hear of mindless leaders devoid of awareness, ideas, positions, or a sense of national belonging. They are small leaders, followers without direction, and the last thing on their minds is the country we seek.

Elevating awareness is what I hold dear and approach with respect and appreciation. Arrogance is a behavior I find unappealing in officers; I feel its bearer suffers from psychological complexes and deep-seated insecurities. I love the humility of leaders without diminishing the firmness I understand is essential in military life. The awareness and resolute firmness of a leader captivate me, not the flaccid and flawed rigidity.

My rebellious and fiery spirit does not submit to oppressive authority that overlooks awareness and fails to elevate it. I rebel against any power that disregards me, belittles my worth, seeks to erase me, disrespects my intellect, or infringes upon my will and existence. A leader is one who practices awareness, uplifts it, and possesses the qualities that qualify and elevate them to rightful leadership.

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