I must say that part of our national wealth is not only the nation's people but those people who lead them.

We want our leaders to be fair dinkum, as much among us as above us.

But it is my total conviction that all the trappings of good leadership are generic and widely applicable whether you are standing in a khaki queue with your mess tins or on an automobile production line.

We all of us have a reputation, something we are known for, and sometimes it may be different from what we would like to be known for. At the core of this is the simple but fragile heart - our integrity - which is always under challenge, under tests both trivial and profound every day of our lives.

Communication is the conduit of leadership from the Prime Minister down to the leading hand of a small group of council workers fixing the roads. Leadership uncommunicated is leadership unrequited!

I must say that part of our national wealth is not only the nation's people but those people who lead them.

Leaders who fail to appreciate this fundamental precept of accountability must also fail to muster the profound commitment true leadership demands.