Defacing Machiavellianism in University Politics : A Discourse to Reconstruct Leadership through Ubuntu

The inevitability of political tendencies involved in the administration of university systems has led many administrators, leaders and managers to engage in various politics of process in an attempt to achieve their aims and objectives. This is unavoidable because of the dynamism of human capital and resources in the system. This study examined the deficiencies of Machiavellianism as politics of process, which predominantly assumes that "the end justifies the means". In my argument, this kind of leadership style is considered as an obstacle to the smooth operation of any university system. However, Ubuntism as humane philosophy was reviewed as an alternative to the unethical principles of Machiavellianism. The study provided a conceptual review on Machiavellianism together with its implications for management. In order to ameliorate this, Ubuntuism was rationalised to deconstruct leadership for better prowess in the politics of process, devoid of cynicism and duplicity in the university community. The study conclusively adopted Ubuntusim, involving humanity, oneness and ethical principles of Africanism as the university politics of process in a bid to exterminate Machiavellianism and promote trustworthiness in university management, administration and leadership. Hence, embracing an inclusive process, interdependency was recommended among stakeholders, along with the derision of the concept "the end justifies the means".