I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a

The words of Charles de Gaulle — “I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians” — ring with both irony and wisdom, born from a man who bore the weight of a nation upon his shoulders. De Gaulle, leader of Free France in its darkest hour, knew well the dangers of leaving the destiny of peoples in the hands of career statesmen who think only of parties, elections, and fleeting advantage. His words remind us that politics is not merely about offices and speeches, but about survival, justice, and the soul of a nation.

At its heart, this saying proclaims that true leadership must rise above the shallow games of power. Too often, politicians pursue compromise without vision, strategy without courage, and promises without sacrifice. But in times of crisis — when nations face war, ruin, or collapse — the stakes are too high for such games. De Gaulle teaches that politics belongs not just to the chambers of parliaments, but to the people themselves, and to leaders willing to sacrifice personal comfort for the destiny of their homeland.

History offers us De Gaulle’s own story as proof. When France fell before Nazi conquest in 1940, most politicians accepted defeat, signing away liberty in the name of peace. Yet De Gaulle, then but a general, refused to surrender. From London he called upon his people to resist, to endure, and to fight. He was not the “politician” of his saying, but the leader who understood that politics meant the life or death of his nation. His refusal to leave France’s future in the hands of cowards became the seed of her eventual liberation.

We find echoes of this truth across the ages. When the American colonies rose against the British crown, it was not polished politicians alone who secured independence, but farmers, printers, soldiers, and visionaries who understood that the destiny of a people could not be entrusted to timid hands. When Abraham Lincoln guided the United States through civil war, he stood not as a party man but as a statesman, willing to bear ridicule and sorrow for the survival of the Union and the abolition of slavery.

Let future generations remember: politics is not a game of words, but the arena where freedom, justice, and destiny are decided. To leave such matters to the narrow interests of politicians alone is to invite decay. The people must remain vigilant, and true leaders must rise with vision and courage, as De Gaulle did, to remind the world that politics, in its truest form, is the stewardship of civilization itself.