A village doctor was stitching up a cut on an old farmer’s hand - an injury from a slamming door. As they chatted, the conversation turned to the villagers’ favorite topic: politics and politicians.
With a sly smile, the old man said,
“Most politicians I know are like turtles on a pole.”
Intrigued, the doctor asked,
“What do you mean by that?”
The farmer gazed into the distance and replied:
“If you’re walking down a country road and see a turtle perched on top of a fence post, you know one thing for certain: it didn’t get up there by itself. It doesn’t belong there. It’s stranded far above its ability to do any useful work, with no idea what to do next. All you can do is wonder who put it there - and what they could possibly have been thinking.”
But this is more than a witty anecdote. It is a perfect metaphor for the system we live in.
Today, in bureaucracies, institutions, and even universities, we encounter these “turtles on poles” every day.
They are people who rise not through merit, but by stepping on others; who are promoted through political connections, nepotism, or blind loyalty; who remain in place not because they are competent, but out of obligation to the ones who placed them there.
The real problem, however, lies not only with the turtles but with the hands that put them there. The issue is a mindset that values loyalty over competence and protects individuals instead of institutions.
In a just system, a position of authority is not a privilege but a sacred trust. When this trust is given to the “incompetent yet ambitious” under the guise of “he’s one of us,” the outcome is inevitable:
“The poles will be crowded with turtles, while the ground below lies empty.”
True leadership is not about leaning on others, but about climbing through one’s own sweat, effort, knowledge, and experience.
This brings to mind a piece of wisdom I heard from a colleague nearly thirty years ago - words I still carry with gratitude:
“Do not lean on a man, he dies; do not lean on a tree, it withers.”
It is not the turtles stranded on their poles, but those with their feet firmly on the ground - those who earn their place through genuine ability - who truly contribute to their country.
And so, we must ask ourselves:
“Which turtles have we placed on the poles - and why do we still allow them to stay there?”