The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana has charged leaders the world over to begin to rethink and realize that being a leader has to do with rendering sacrificial services to God and humanity and not possession of wealth or material things.

Rt. Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Martey asked that individuals who want to lead others must endeavour to understand that service to God and all manner of persons is key to becoming a great leader.

Prof. Martey made the call in a sermon at a special thanksgiving service at the Ebenezer Presbyterian Church Osu, in Accra on Sunday, as part of activities marking the 200 anniversary of the founding of the Basel Mission, which established the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG).

Preaching on the theme: “Greatness In Service,” the moderator, widely respected for his never-ending open crusade against acts of immorality, corruption and indiscipline, stated emphatically that many leaders in Ghana and around the world continue to misunderstand what it means to be a great leader.

According to him, many such leaders ignorantly perceive greatness to mean the possession of wealth, power and influence.

“Many people want to be leaders without the sacrificial service that must go with leadership. Christians continue to fight among themselves for positions. Such attitudes are transferred to public life. Everyone wants to lead and no one wants to be a servant,” Prof. Martey decried.

The Christian cleric stressed that to achieve true greatness as a leader, one ought to understand that greatness comes by making self-effacing and sacrificial services to one’s followers on a continuous basis.

‘Ghana Is Not Poor’

He attributed the high rate of corruption and bribery in all spheres of the Ghanaian society as well as the mad rush for political power to the detriment of the will of the ordinary citizens, to the lack of a sound understanding of the true meaning of greatness.

According to him, Ghana as a nation needs not be described as a poor country because it has all the natural resources it needs to make life comfortable for its citizens.

“Ghana is not poor. We have all the resources we need,” he stressed during his close to an hour-long sermon which was attended by missionaries from Germany, Japan, South Korea, South Africa and members of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana.

But that notwithstanding, Prof. Martey said the economic transformation of the country might not come about anytime soon if Ghanaian leaders – both in politics, clergy and others – do not see the need to serve in the best interest of the masses.

“Ghana can only be great if the leadership in every sphere of life is willing to serve,” he emphasized.

Touching on the lives of the Basel Missionaries who first visited the Gold Coast in 1815 to spread the gospel to Ghanaians, Prof. Martey underscored the fact that they laid down their lives in selfless service to humanity and God and charged leaders of today and generations to come to endeavor to walk in their (missionaries’) footsteps.