What was wrong with Khaddafi?

China, we have voted to give China a member state in the Security Council. This was done democratically, but the other member seats was not Democratic, was imposed upon us. This should not be accepted by us, and it was a dictatorial procedure that was done against our will. Quote by Khaddafi, 23 September 2009 at the UN general assembly

Khaddafi stepped into the international Union of Nations as an angry man who was right in his own eyes. During the September 23, 2009 UN general assembly which also marked the first appearance of Khaddafi for his 40 years rule in Libya in the UN after appeals by some member nations, Khaddafi was given the floor to address the assembly in the normal 15minutes talk. Khaddafi however broke the rule by talking for 1 hour 36minutes. All the time was spent in pointing fingers on other nations and a courageous criticism of the UN.

He remarked in his speech that, “Democracy is not for the rich or for the one who is more powerful. All nations should have an equal footing. For those who have a permanent seat, this is political feudalism. It shouldn't be called the Security Council; it should be called the terror council.”

In following up with his speech Khaddafi threw a copy of the UN charter on the ground expressing his displeasure of the charter which to him had been abused by the powerful nations.

This act of Khaddafi came as a shock to most international representatives. “Why did you toss the charter on the ground?” a question that was posed by the British Prime Minister.

The following day, Khaddafi admitted that sometimes he is overtaken by emotion and anger in an interview on the popular CNN Larry King Live.

It wasn't only in this instance of the UN summit, Khaddafi has been seen throwing words helter skelter in anger. Why was he doing that?

The problem with Khaddafi was temperament. He was a very temperamental person. In a more sense, we will say he was a choleric leader.

Cholerics are excellent leaders who can achieve great things in a quick and precise manner. To a choleric, task must be achieved no matter what the situation. They are the leaders who say, “If you can't leave it to me.” Impossibility doesn't count even if they are nearing failure. Never be afraid to commit a task in the hands of a choleric because he will finish it excellently. These are actually the kind of spirits the world needs.

However, this temperament is one of the most deadly and catastrophic of all the temperaments when it gets out of control. This is because the choleric is “temperamentally-sick.”

“It is not unreasonable to state that the world's greatest feared dictators and diabolical criminals were perhaps Choleric…

Cholerics are extremely tough-willed. When they have made up their minds they rarely if ever change it, even if they are wrong. Cholerics will seldom listen to the advice of anyone else. They want to have total control over themselves and anyone around them…

The Choleric is extremely self-centered and the needs of others do not matter, they are perfectionistic and even their own flaws are flawless. ” http://www.godswayservices.com/The-Choleric.htm

This was the whole downfall of Khaddafi. He failed to recognize his weakness and was flattered to be doing right things on the wrong side of his temperament. Even though a lot of friends and colleague presidents advised Khaddafi on certain principles, he refused to listen. He went as far as disobeying higher governmental and organizational bodies thinking they were all bandit.

It is one thing being right and another doing it right. Even though Khaddafi did his best to make Libya one of the best nations in the world, he was at the same time betrayed by his temperament and pride.

On the 4th January 2011, The sixteenth session of the UN Human Rights Council's Universal Periodic Review reported on the human rights situation in Libya under Khaddafi. The review showed that rights for humanity was highly respected under Khaddafi and many countries commended the achievements of Libya. From sources, the UN was about to award Khaddafi on March 2011 for his humanitarian rights achievements in Libya. The Periodic Review Report can be found here http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/16session/A-HRC-16-15.pdf

This weak aspect of Khaddafi must be an example to all leaders who really dream to finish well. We must try to identify our weakness and accept the help of friends and relatives. They must be ready to accept their faults and make corrections where necessary and quickly.

“I feel sorry for him because he underestimated the situation. He could have left and gotten out of the country and lived a happy life.” Monsour Dao, Khaddafi's bodyguard.