A Historical Reflection - Leadership in Primitive Africa

It would not be correct to think that the kind of leadership in present day Africa has no bearing on the past. This applies to both political and religious kind of leadership and inclusive of various levels of leaderships. Regardless of the kind of leadership (political or religious) or the level of leadership, e.g., head of state or head of a family, there are indications that traditional concept of leadership in Africa is still prevalent in present day concept of leadership. In this article the goal is to identify the leadership concept in Africa during the primitive years of the development of the continent. In the process it will also be shown how the people developed this concept. As a case study, special attention will be given to Sierra Leone because of her uniqueness in being an African country founded by Western powers.

INDIGENOUS CONCEPT OF LEADERSHIP IN AFRICA

In his discussion on early civilization, F. K. Buah in his book, 'Ancient World', made this observation; "After a while men saw that it was not safe to have their homes scattered about and began to build them near each other in the same place. This is how village life began. Where there are more than two families staying in the area, there must be someone who will look after the common good of the people. The headman is generally the first person who had settled in the village, or he was the bravest of the people who lived there. He was to rule these people by a council made up of the oldest and wisest men in the village." From these words of F. K. Buah, a background to the development of leadership is brought into focus. It can be observed that whilst Western countries have developed greatly into cosmopolitan cities, a much larger part of Africa portrayed early and typical village settings. Two things can be pointed out from the citation above concerning the way leaders were recognized in the past: first, they were recognized in terms of age or the time period one has been in a particular area; second, they were recognized because of some personal qualities or achievements.

In his book, 'The History of Sierra Leone' Magbaily Fyle discussed more about this early forms of leadership in the continent. According to him, villages and towns may group together in a section, which is referred to as a state. All of the towns may have their own immediate rulers. The head of the main town in that section, usually the oldest town, was the Chief of that section. This head would be recognized as the King, because he belonged to the family, which founded the town that became the center of the state.

Magbaily Fyle pointed out that in the founding of most states, warfare had been involved. He said that if a person is a great hunter or warrior or even as in Mende country, being a popular "moriman", it is easy for that person to be brought the leadership of a prominent town and eventually becoming the King of a state. Like F. K. Buah, Magbaily Fyle agreed that special good qualities were essentials for the recognition of leaders.

Warfare was the most important factor involved in recognizing a leader. But as Fyle observed, later considerations were given to people whose forefathers have been great warriors, though the person has to prove himself. F.K. Buah in his book, 'West Africa and Europe', throws more light on Fyle's observation made above when he said that people moved from one place to another to make new settlement as a result of bad climate, infertile land, famine, floods, or war with stronger people. In cases where new settlements developed as a result of any of the reasons stated above, other than war, considerations of a person's forefathers are taken into account in recognizing a leader. In the case of war, the stronger becomes the leader. F. K. Buah brought this to light as he discussed the history of the Denykyira and Asante people of Ghana around 1695 A.D. The Denkyiras were ruling the Asante people by then. According to Buah, the Asante realized that, in order to become a powerful nation, they must have direct contact with the Europeans. Under the Dekyiras this could not happen, so they looked for an opportunity to fight the Denkyiras in order to free themselves. This opportunity came when the Denkyira King asked for more taxes in gold. They took advantage of it and freed themselves. The Asante then built up a powerful kingdom. F. K. Buah further observed, "from what we read about the Asante in books, we get the impression that they spent most of their time in warfare. It is true in the course of expanding their empire, the Asante King had to fight and subdue other Kingdoms".

The King or the Chiefs were not the only leaders recognized during the early stages in the development of Africa. Councils of elders, to help Kings or Chiefs in their duties have long been recognized in Africa. The concern at this point is how these elders were recognized. Magbaily Fyle noted that there were no written records of the names of those elder during those times. These societies did little or no writing. However, he said everyone knew who the elders were. If a man was becoming important, he became an elder. He became fully recognized once his absence in a meeting raised comments among the other elders.8

Fyle also noted that another class of leaders recognized in traditional Africa was those of various secret societies. In reference to the male societies, he stated that these leaders taught young men activities of manhood such as, fighting, hunting, the use of various herbs to cure ailments, recognition of rank order in society and other matters. The point here is that these leaders, who were not necessarily the political leaders of the village or state, were also given recognition.9

THE WESTERN CONCEPT OF ACKNOWLEDGING LEADERSHIP IN TRADITIONAL AFFRICA

The traditional concept of leadership in Africa has also been influenced by western concept. In most African countries, this influence became obvious during the period that led to independence. However, Sierra Leone is unique in the sense that the country has a direct influence of western powers in her establishment as a nation. F.K. Buah in his book, 'Africa and Europe', briefly described how the country was founded. He said that freed slaves who become social problems in London, Nova Scotia and Jamaica were brought by the British to a coastal area in the west coast of Africa and resettled. The British directly governed these resettled slaves.10 Arthur Porter, in his book "Creoledom", revealed the western influence in the leadership during the development of the nation in the following quote: "religious originations in Freetown did not have to wait for missionaries from Europe. Many of the Nova Scotian settlers had been Christians in Canada and on arrival had set up chapels for themselves". It can be seen from the quote that westerners had already influenced these settlers before they came back. They set up chapels, a copy of western practices quite different from the indigenes. Porter further observed. "The churches were not organizations devoted only to service and worship; they were also centers of social life in the community, providing a field of activity in which the freed Negroes could acquire status and exercise leadership. The church provided an easy opportunity for status enhancement to those with aspiration for leadership. Thus many with great ability and force of personality, if not academic distinction, soon broke away and collected their own following".11 Like the indigenous people, leadership for these African settlers involved a fight although it was not physical. Also personal ability and qualification counts. Unlike the indigenes one is not qualified to lead because of age or because he has been around the longest. F.K. Buah, in his book, "West Africa and Europe" noted that the Christian missionaries who came shortly after the founding of Sierra Leone were very much interested in education. They built schools and later a college. As the settlers and indigenes became one people, the different leaderships concepts blend into one. Leadership positions became more of an appointment or election rather than a show of force.12

CONCLUSION

Africans had a concept of leadership from the primitive stages of the development of the continent. The indigenous people of the continent considered people who could protect them physically and at times spiritually, such as a warrior, hunter, moriman, etc, as qualified to lead. Old age is also considered as wisdom and qualifies the individual to lead or to be in the ruling council.

Since most African countries were colonized by western powers and they founded others, another dimension of traditional leadership was developed in the continent. Leaders were recognized by educational qualification. Agee was given little consideration. Leaders were appointed or elected. The way the leaders were recognized or acknowledged gives one partial knowledge of their leadership concept. It has been appointed or elected. The way the leaders were recognized or acknowledged gives one partial knowledge of their leadership concept. It has been seen that it a blend of indigenous and western approaches.

A Historical Reflection: Leadership in Primitive Africa

It would not be correct to think that the kind of leadership in present day Africa has no bearing on the past. This applies to both political and religious kind of leadership and inclusive of various levels of leaderships. Regardless of the kind of leadership (political or religious) or the level of leadership, e.g., head of state or head of a family, there are indications that traditional concept of leadership in Africa is still prevalent in present day concept of leadership. In this article the goal is to identify the leadership concept in Africa during the primitive years of the development of the continent. In the process it will also be shown how the people developed this concept. As a case study, special attention will be given to Sierra Leone because of her uniqueness in being an African country founded by Western powers.

INDIGENOUS CONCEPT OF LEADERSHIP IN AFRICA

In his discussion on early civilization, F. K. Buah in his book, 'Ancient World', made this observation; "After a while men saw that it was not safe to have their homes scattered about and began to build them near each other in the same place. This is how village life began. Where there are more than two families staying in the area, there must be someone who will look after the common good of the people. The headman is generally the first person who had settled in the village, or he was the bravest of the people who lived there. He was to rule these people by a council made up of the oldest and wisest men in the village." From these words of F. K. Buah, a background to the development of leadership is brought into focus. It can be observed that whilst Western countries have developed greatly into cosmopolitan cities, a much larger part of Africa portrayed early and typical village settings. Two things can be pointed out from the citation above concerning the way leaders were recognized in the past: first, they were recognized in terms of age or the time period one has been in a particular area; second, they were recognized because of some personal qualities or achievements.

In his book, 'The History of Sierra Leone' Magbaily Fyle discussed more about this early forms of leadership in the continent. According to him, villages and towns may group together in a section, which is referred to as a state. All of the towns may have their own immediate rulers. The head of the main town in that section, usually the oldest town, was the Chief of that section. This head would be recognized as the King, because he belonged to the family, which founded the town that became the center of the state.

Magbaily Fyle pointed out that in the founding of most states, warfare had been involved. He said that if a person is a great hunter or warrior or even as in Mende country, being a popular "moriman", it is easy for that person to be brought the leadership of a prominent town and eventually becoming the King of a state. Like F. K. Buah, Magbaily Fyle agreed that special good qualities were essentials for the recognition of leaders.

Warfare was the most important factor involved in recognizing a leader. But as Fyle observed, later considerations were given to people whose forefathers have been great warriors, though the person has to prove himself. F.K. Buah in his book, 'West Africa and Europe', throws more light on Fyle's observation made above when he said that people moved from one place to another to make new settlement as a result of bad climate, infertile land, famine, floods, or war with stronger people. In cases where new settlements developed as a result of any of the reasons stated above, other than war, considerations of a person's forefathers are taken into account in recognizing a leader. In the case of war, the stronger becomes the leader. F. K. Buah brought this to light as he discussed the history of the Denykyira and Asante people of Ghana around 1695 A.D. The Denkyiras were ruling the Asante people by then. According to Buah, the Asante realized that, in order to become a powerful nation, they must have direct contact with the Europeans. Under the Dekyiras this could not happen, so they looked for an opportunity to fight the Denkyiras in order to free themselves. This opportunity came when the Denkyira King asked for more taxes in gold. They took advantage of it and freed themselves. The Asante then built up a powerful kingdom. F. K. Buah further observed, "from what we read about the Asante in books, we get the impression that they spent most of their time in warfare. It is true in the course of expanding their empire, the Asante King had to fight and subdue other Kingdoms".

The King or the Chiefs were not the only leaders recognized during the early stages in the development of Africa. Councils of elders, to help Kings or Chiefs in their duties have long been recognized in Africa. The concern at this point is how these elders were recognized. Magbaily Fyle noted that there were no written records of the names of those elder during those times. These societies did little or no writing. However, he said everyone knew who the elders were. If a man was becoming important, he became an elder. He became fully recognized once his absence in a meeting raised comments among the other elders.8

Fyle also noted that another class of leaders recognized in traditional Africa was those of various secret societies. In reference to the male societies, he stated that these leaders taught young men activities of manhood such as, fighting, hunting, the use of various herbs to cure ailments, recognition of rank order in society and other matters. The point here is that these leaders, who were not necessarily the political leaders of the village or state, were also given recognition.9

THE WESTERN CONCEPT OF ACKNOWLEDGING LEADERSHIP IN TRADITIONAL AFFRICA

The traditional concept of leadership in Africa has also been influenced by western concept. In most African countries, this influence became obvious during the period that led to independence. However, Sierra Leone is unique in the sense that the country has a direct influence of western powers in her establishment as a nation. F.K. Buah in his book, 'Africa and Europe', briefly described how the country was founded. He said that freed slaves who become social problems in London, Nova Scotia and Jamaica were brought by the British to a coastal area in the west coast of Africa and resettled. The British directly governed these resettled slaves.10 Arthur Porter, in his book "Creoledom", revealed the western influence in the leadership during the development of the nation in the following quote: "religious originations in Freetown did not have to wait for missionaries from Europe. Many of the Nova Scotian settlers had been Christians in Canada and on arrival had set up chapels for themselves". It can be seen from the quote that westerners had already influenced these settlers before they came back. They set up chapels, a copy of western practices quite different from the indigenes. Porter further observed. "The churches were not organizations devoted only to service and worship; they were also centers of social life in the community, providing a field of activity in which the freed Negroes could acquire status and exercise leadership. The church provided an easy opportunity for status enhancement to those with aspiration for leadership. Thus many with great ability and force of personality, if not academic distinction, soon broke away and collected their own following".11 Like the indigenous people, leadership for these African settlers involved a fight although it was not physical. Also personal ability and qualification counts. Unlike the indigenes one is not qualified to lead because of age or because he has been around the longest. F.K. Buah, in his book, "West Africa and Europe" noted that the Christian missionaries who came shortly after the founding of Sierra Leone were very much interested in education. They built schools and later a college. As the settlers and indigenes became one people, the different leaderships concepts blend into one. Leadership positions became more of an appointment or election rather than a show of force.12

CONCLUSION

Africans had a concept of leadership from the primitive stages of the development of the continent. The indigenous people of the continent considered people who could protect them physically and at times spiritually, such as a warrior, hunter, moriman, etc, as qualified to lead. Old age is also considered as wisdom and qualifies the individual to lead or to be in the ruling council.

Since most African countries were colonized by western powers and they founded others, another dimension of traditional leadership was developed in the continent. Leaders were recognized by educational qualification. Agee was given little consideration. Leaders were appointed or elected. The way the leaders were recognized or acknowledged gives one partial knowledge of their leadership concept. It has been appointed or elected. The way the leaders were recognized or acknowledged gives one partial knowledge of their leadership concept. It has been seen that it a blend of indigenous and western approaches.

ENDNOTES:

1.F. K. Buah, West Africa and Europe (London: Macmillan Publishers, 19), p. 56.

2.Magbaily Fyle, The History of Sierra Leone (London: Evans Brothers Limited, 1981), p. 56.

3.Ibid, p.57.

4.Ibid, p. 57.

5.F. K. Buah, West Africa and Europe (London: Macmillan Publishers, 1960), p. 96.

6.Ibid, pp.112-3.

7.Ibid, p. 116

8 Magbaily Fyle, The History of Sierra Leone (London: Evans Brothers Limited, 1981), p. 59.

9 Ibid, p 66.

10 F.K. Buah, West Africa and Europe (London: Macmillan Publishers, 1960), P158/9

11 Arthur Porter, Creoledom (London: Oxford University Press, 1963), p. 78/9

12 F.K. Buah, West Africa and Europe (London: Macmillan Publishers, 1960), p 161.

Dr. Leopold A. Foullah is currently Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies, Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, Mount Aureol, Freetown. He is also the General Superintendent of the Missionary Church of Africa, Sierra Leone Conference. He holds the following academic qualifications: Dip.Th., B.Th., M.Div., M.Th. and Ph.D (Leeds University, England). He is interested in Biblical Theology and Social Issues. He is External Examiner for both The Evangelical College of Theology (TECT), Jui and the Sierra Leone Theological College & Church Training Centre in Freetown. He is married with three children.