It takes a passion to serve the people of your country. An acute intelligence and a fighting will. Dedication, vision and willpower are essential in a leader.
It is easy to imagine what qualities a prime minister should possess, but the challenge is to find one person who possesses them all, and uses them successfully.
Canadians were recently confronted with former prime minister Brian Mulroney’s innermost thoughts. Peter C. Newman’s book has spurred an onslaught of differing viewpoints from supporters and blatant Mulroney haters. Canadian’s have flooded papers with letters while major news agencies pump out excerpts that have brought the Mulroney term back into their thoughts.
Besides Sir John A. Macdonald, Mulroney cited himself as the most successful prime minister in Canadian history. Far be it for Mulroney to stop there. Newman’s book reveals Mulroney calling himself the “greatest.”
For many Canadians former prime minister Pierre Trudeau would take the top spot.
To Mulroney, Trudeau was, “a bully.” In his musings, Mulroney believed Trudeau “was dishonest intellectually; he moved from party to party for opportunistic reasons and his record as a prime minister is absolutely mediocre.”
Trudeau’s “mediocre record” includes the liberalization of Canada’s immigration policy and the introduction of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Not to mention he was the first prime minister to open diplomatic relations with China.
The intention here is not to bash Mulroney or point out his illusions by contrasting his bizarre quotations while upholding Trudeau’s grandiose legacy.
But the entire huff over the words of a former prime minister has brought two questions to light. What makes a prime minister great? What are Canadians looking for in a leader?
Honesty, integrity, passion, vision, and commanding leadership qualities would all be ideal in a prime minister.
Each adjective expresses the need for an individual who is above the norm, someone who could lead this country’s delicate balance without dropping the ball.
Of course, if a prime minister possessed all of those qualities it would not necessarily secure their success in a world of political games.
Lester B. Pearson was recently voted by the Institute for Research on Public Policy ( IRPP) Policy Options Magazine panel, as being the best prime minister to serve Canada.
Yet Pearson was in constant threat of losing his minority government.
Prime Minister Paul Martin faces much of the same threat. Minority government leaders, despite arguably good initiatives, are prey for power hungry politicians.
Canadians are not interested in political games. They are looking for a leader to act. To be noble in those actions and be determined to make the lives of Canadians better. A great prime minister would support those intentions with meaningful public policies.
Mulroney believes he was the best. Possibly some small segment of the population agrees, those who have not noticed GST on their latest receipt.
Regardless of who has led this country and who believes they are the greatest, the next election will focus on who will lead Canada in the future. It is a perfect time for Canadians to reflect upon what they demand of their leaders.
Perhaps our next prime minister will have all of the finer qualities of those who ruled before, or maybe no resemblance at all to past leaders. It is hard to determine which one of those two options would be great.