JOURNALS

ABSTRACT

A cursory glance at most public political offices in Nigeria reveals they are headed by the elderly. The rationale behind this as in typical African traditional society is the assumption that elders are richer in experiences and wisdom. Armed with these, it is expected that an elder can and should discharge his/her responsibility to the Nigerian citizens with integrity and in accordance with the laid down rules of conduct in public office. Incidents and circumstances in Nigerian have revealed that there is broken thread between the traditionally revered status of the elder and the much desired honesty, accountability and uprightness of character. Consequently, this breeds corruption and stagnate growth and development thereby leading to untold hardships and difficulties. This paper takes a historical look at the status of the elder from the biblical perspective and the image in African traditional society and examines the effects of abuse of the status in public office. The paper therefore in the light of Christian model of eldership proffer more viable ways elders are to conduct themselves in public office to remedy the lost connection to a better Nigeria.