Uchechukwu Ohajuru

In corporate leadership, the most challenging moment is not the rise of power; it is the transfer of it. Many organizations fail not because the founder was weak, but because the successor was unprepared, or worse, uncommitted. The Bible offers a timeless business case in the relationship between Elijah and Elisha, a masterclass in mentoring, succession planning, and leadership seriousness. When Elisha asked Elijah for a “double portion,” he was not asking for comfort, title, or ceremonial inheritance. In the Hebrew context, the double portion is the share of the firstborn, the one expected to carry continuity, responsibility, and growth. Elisha was effectively saying: I do not want to merely maintain what you built; I want the capacity to exceed it. That is ambition with accountability. Elijah did not resist that request. He prepared Elisha. He walked with him, exposed him to the work, and allowed him to observe leadership in motion. This is active succession, not accidental handover. Great leaders do not disappear; they deliberately develop successors. Before leaving, Elijah gave Elisha the mantle, a visible symbol that authority had been transferred. In modern organizations, this looks like a departing CEO staying on as an advisor, signaling continuity, confidence boosting, and institutional memory. The leader may be stepping aside, but the system is not abandoned. Yet symbols alone do not solve problems. Elisha proved readiness when he used the mantle to part the River Jordan. He did not frame it, announce it, or debate its meaning. He deployed it. Leadership authority is validated not by possession, but by problem-solving. Power that cannot be used is not power; it is decoration. But note this, long before that moment, Elisha had already demonstrated something rarer: absolute commitment to the mission. When Elijah first called him, Elisha burned his plowing equipment and slaughtered his oxen. This was not emotion; it was strategy. He eliminated the option of retreating. No side hustle. No fallback plan. No divided attention. He severed his past to fully enter his future. That act alone explains why he could carry the double portion because he had the capacity to carry weight! Good People, most of the CEOs we hail make uncommon personal sacrifices, as they hold the mantle in the firm. They sign up for things we cannot commit to with radical dedication to the Firm. In our world, people ask for authority, campaign for power, negotiate titles, but when authority arrives, they become distracted. Elected to the Senate but treating it as a part-time role. Appointed CEO but mentally invested in the side hustle. Power is requested, but mission is optional. Elisha teaches a lesson: if you want authority, you must be ready to deploy it, and deploy it on the assignment for which it was given tekedia.com/business-lesson-…

It is very likely that in 2025 the United States will be at war. The vectors are consolidating from all corners. Israel vs Gaza, Lebanon, Iran etc will bring the US into the theater. Ukraine vs Russia will likely escalate more especially if the Democrats retain the White House. Also, what is happening in the Korean peninsula is troubling, as North Korea makes its case that it will not disarm since doing that will likely make its leader another Gaddaffi or Saddam Hussein. So, its posture will not change. Of course, Sudan has attained a stable crisis state, and could be there for a decade, as there is no global leadership to bring warring factions to diplomatic tables. The United Nations is lost, and your village school headmaster has more influence than whatever they put out as a statement. A new World Order is evolving and even the UN is threatened, because from Gaza to Ukraine to Sudan, it is now a place to speak grammar and nothing more! But the grand nucleus in all these pockets of lethal beats is what the leader of China has communicated to his military: “prepare for war”. We think it is against Taiwan - and that means the United States, since the US had made it clear that it would go to war to preserve Taiwan. Good People, the year 2025 could be exceedingly dangerous irrespective of who wins the US Presidency. If Trump wins, the US could be drawn into a real battle with Iran. If Kamala wins, the US could be busy with China to help Taiwan. For Nigeria, what is the strategic imperative as these events unfold? Simply, Nigerian leaders must plan. We’re yet to recover from the inflationary distortion exacerbated by the Ukraine-Russia war. If China, US and Russia are engaged at the same time, in different forms, and looking at our trade patterns, Nigeria could be asymmetrically affected. That is why the nation must plan. The current world order is fragile, and a new one is evolving, and across human history, that never happens without wars! For these two men, it is time to ask - what happens if we cannot trade with China, US and Russia for 6 months because they’re at war? tekedia.com/nigeria-must-pla…