POWER by Z. Allan Ntata

Freud argued that sex is the primary drive and the primal instinct in all living things. A very simplistic view of the Freudian argument is that achievements are essentially driven by the desire to win mates, the desire to perpetuate one’s genes at the expense of the other. In other words, When Leonardo da Vinci decided to paint his artistic masterpiece in the Cistine chapel, he did it, perhaps not even to his conscious knowledge, so that he could win the girls.

Alfred Adler on the other hand argued that the dominant impulse is the quest for recognition. The desire to be first or to be recognized for our efforts is more important to our ego that sometimes it even competes with our quest for food.

It can be argued, however, that lying underneath these theories is the common denominator of power. It has been said that where power is, power goes! If it is your genes that are carried from generation to generation in a society, then you could be said to be quite powerful. If your efforts are recognized for your efforts and given the credit and the necessary vitamin A to your ego, then you are a powerful man. It has even been suggested that power is the greatest aphrodisiac for women! Men of power seem to have no problems with sex or recognition. And so from generation to generation, millions are drawn to the allure of power, and unfortunately, also its trappings.

The Chinese philosopher Lao Tsu observed that the power that is really worth pursuing, however, should not be power over others, but power over oneself.

Many seek power over others forgetting that real power is the power that keeps in check the war that rages in every soul. Indeed, if individuals had this power, we would see less of the atrocities that are the result of the abuse of power. The current state of the world is a clear testament to the fact that in spite of its glamour and attraction, to every large extent, power in the hands of men is as destructive a tool as intelligence in the hands of the psychotic.

Power corrupts, declared Benjamin Franklin, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
We strive to study so we can obtain knowledge, and knowledge is power. The paradox is therefore self proclaiming and demanding of every thinking person’s consideration: Study hard, obtain knowledge and be corrupt!

- Z. Allan Ntata