WOMEN SHOULD WORK HARD TO BE LEADERS

Sir,

Allow me to steal these words which were used by my late mum, Grace, when she said, “I was not born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I did not chase after fun but fought for what was right for me.”

I concur with what she said because I am one of those who believe that we need more women who will represent us in the next Parliament. I am glad that even His Majesty King Mswati III has made the call that the time has come for our women to stand up and be counted so that their voices can be heard. I believe he said that because he knows there is a lot of difference that women can make in society. Women can be true leaders.

I am hoping that all Swazis will support this initiative and will do so with the understanding that it does not mean that one should make everything gender based and that it is wrong to demand a leadership position simply because the men are dominating. Of course we need to have some balance between men and women in all leadership positions but everyone should be appointed on merit.

The women should go to Parliament for the right reason. A good woman should spot a vacuum and genuinely work her way to occupying it because she has the potential and must not expect to lead just because she is a woman. We want women who will be transparent and will work with honesty and accountability at all times with an ambition to take our country forward.

The task of a leader is to take the people from where they are to where they have never been. A good leader is someone who has the people’s interests at heart, not someone who is eyeing personal glory. Leaders are not made but born. I like the words “If people like you, they will listen to you. But if they trust you, they will do business with you.”

A good leader does not celebrate when he or she receives a fat cheque, but only when the people he or she leads are well served.
It is a pity that so many people today fight over leadership positions and it is so bad so much that they even do so in church which is a shame. This calls for women to work twice as hard to keep the balance right in the top positions. Women must be empowered economically socially, politically and otherwise to take up important roles in society.

Dlamini, Sandlane

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