--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can't speak with authority about Emeka…" description: "\"I can't speak with authority about Emeka Anyaoku. I just didn't know him that well.\" — Bob Hawke" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg" --- # I can't speak with authority about Emeka Anyaoku. I just… ![“I can't speak with authority about Emeka Anyaoku. I just didn't know him that well.” quote by Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg) > “I can't speak with authority about Emeka Anyaoku. I just didn't know him that well.” [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker admits limited knowledge about Emeka Anyaoku, highlighting humility and the importance of honest expertise. **In simple terms:** Admitting ignorance shows humility; expertise matters. Key Takeaway Speak only on what you know; seek reliable sources. Themes humility expertise politics integrity knowledge Mood reflective cautious Type political philosophical When to use this quote - policy discussion - international relations - media interviews - public statements Key Concepts honesty responsibility learning Questions to Reflect On - How can you verify a speaker’s expertise? - What role does humility play in leadership? A Different Perspective Even honest admissions may be used politically to undermine credibility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anyaoku Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anyaoku-just-3175241/) [Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) [Authority Emeka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority-emeka-3175240/) [Didn Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/didn-know/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Just Didn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just-didn/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Speak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speak/) [Speak Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speak-authority-339377/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [I don't feel I can speak with authority for many other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul/i-don-t-feel-i-can-speak-with-authority-for-many-other-people/) [V. S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul/) > [I believed in God when cancer come to me. Now when I speak, I speak with authority because I've been there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mr-t/i-believed-in-god-when-cancer-come-to-me-now-when-i-speak-i-speak/) [Mr. T](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mr-t/) > [“When we speak of authority at present we usually have in mind governmental authority. Actually, social order is most firm when imposed and maintained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-we-speak-of-authority-at-present-we-usually-have-in-mind/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“Men. They just didn’t know how to multitask.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-ward/men-they-just-didn-t-know-how-to-multitask/) [Alice Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-ward/) > [I was always writing. I just didn't know if I was any good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dufresne/i-was-always-writing-i-just-didn-t-know-if-i-was-any-good/) [John Dufresne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dufresne/) > [Don’t discount that part of who he was just because you didn’t know it. None of us are all of who we are to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-scalzi/don-t-discount-that-part-of-who-he-was-just-because-you-didn-t-know/) [John Scalzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-scalzi/) > [I've been looking for you a long time, I just didn't know it. But now I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/i-ve-been-looking-for-you-a-long-time-i-just-didn-t-know-it-but-now-i/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [I realized that it was not that I didn’t want to go on without him. I did. It was just that I didn’t know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/i-realized-that-it-was-not-that-i-didn-t-want-to-go-on-without-him-i/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [“I always knew what I wanted to do, I just didn't know I could do it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-lacour/i-always-knew-what-i-wanted-to-do-i-just-didn-t-know-i-could-do-it/) [Nina LaCour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-lacour/) > [Those are always fun characters to play, the ones who are stupid but speak with authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-tudyk/those-are-always-fun-characters-to-play-the-ones-who-are-stupid-but/) [Alan Tudyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-tudyk/) > [Certainly, when you have shoulder pads on that go up to your ears, you hold yourself a certain way. You speak with authority when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendi-mclendon-covey/certainly-when-you-have-shoulder-pads-on-that-go-up-to-your-ears-you/) [Wendi McLendon-Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendi-mclendon-covey/) > [The dilemma of the critic has always been that if he knows enough to speak with authority, he knows too much to speak with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/the-dilemma-of-the-critic-has-always-been-that-if-he-knows-enough-to/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [I don't know where it's come from, but after many years of many different products, I feel like I can speak as an authority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-diane-raphael/i-don-t-know-where-it-s-come-from-but-after-many-years-of-many/) [June Diane Raphael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-diane-raphael/) > [“You have to experience it, in order to speak about it with authority. Joseph Wambaugh says it with an air of that same authenticity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-wambaugh/you-have-to-experience-it-in-order-to-speak-about-it-with-authority/) [Joseph Wambaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-wambaugh/) > [I had decided I wanted to write about food, and I knew the only way to do that is to speak with authority, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-simmons/i-had-decided-i-wanted-to-write-about-food-and-i-knew-the-only-way-to/) [Gail Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-simmons/) ## More by Bob Hawke > [ Brian Mulroney, myself, \[and\] Rajiv Gandhi; I think that was the real core \[of the Commonwealth \]. That was the engine room, I reckon. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/brian-mulroney-myself-and-rajiv-gandhi-i-think-that-was-the-real-core/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [While society cannot provide employment for its members, the production/work/income nexus has to be abandoned as a justification for our present parsimony to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/while-society-cannot-provide-employment-for-its-members-the/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [ We \[ with Brian Mulroney and Rajiv Gandhi\] went to the meeting in Canada \[the 1987 Vancouver CHOGM\] and I said to them there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/we-with-brian-mulroney-and-rajiv-gandhi-went-to-the-meeting-in-canada/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [ I told \[ David Lange\] he was crazy, because you can't have an alliance relationship if you refuse access to their ships. And the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-told-david-lange-he-was-crazy-because-you-can-t-have-an-alliance/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [I find a fence a very uncomfortable place to squat my bottom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-find-a-fence-a-very-uncomfortable-place-to-squat-my-bottom/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [ There is a reciprocal respect for \[ Elizabeth II\], for her interest in the Commonwealth. The members of the Commonwealth recognise that here is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/there-is-a-reciprocal-respect-for-elizabeth-ii-for-her-interest-in/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [We are building together a nation in which there are no second-class Australians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/we-are-building-together-a-nation-in-which-there-are-no-second-class/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [I had no time for Indira Gandhi. She was too much in the Russian camp for my liking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-had-no-time-for-indira-gandhi-she-was-too-much-in-the-russian-camp/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [I wrote a letter to our Australian newspaper about three weeks before the invasion and I said, "Osama bin Laden must be on his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-wrote-a-letter-to-our-australian-newspaper-about-three-weeks-before/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [ George Bush Junior \[George W Bush\] was a religious fanatic, and Tony Blair wasn't far behind in a way. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/george-bush-junior-george-w-bush-was-a-religious-fanatic-and-tony/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [I felt completely ready to become prime minister. I came to office better equipped, in terms of knowledge of economics and of the Australian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-felt-completely-ready-to-become-prime-minister-i-came-to-office/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [I went along with it, and wanted to appoint a significant figure in Malcolm Fraser. I didn't have high hopes that they'd be able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-went-along-with-it-and-wanted-to-appoint-a-significant-figure-in/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [ One of the features of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings was \[that\] she \[ Elizabeth II\] would have a meeting with each of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/one-of-the-features-of-the-commonwealth-heads-of-government-meetings/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [The greatest stain upon this great Australian nation's character, without any question, is the great gaps that exist between our Aboriginal brothers and sisters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/the-greatest-stain-upon-this-great-australian-nation-s-character/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [I was used on a number of occasions by the United States and China as a conduit. For instance, I was up there talking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-was-used-on-a-number-of-occasions-by-the-united-states-and-china-as/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) [Explore all 86 Bob Hawke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) ## More Authority quotes > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/) [Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/) > [I think people need to be comfortable questioning the authority of a doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/i-think-people-need-to-be-comfortable-questioning-the-authority-of-a/) [Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/) > [At a distance, we cannot conceive of the authority of a despot who knows all his subjects on sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/at-a-distance-we-cannot-conceive-of-the-authority-of-a-despot-who/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening, terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/throughout-human-history-as-our-species-has-faced-the-frightening/) [Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/) > [“I'm of the age and immaturity level that I cannot give you my respect solely because you are older or ranked higher on an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-goros/i-m-of-the-age-and-immaturity-level-that-i-cannot-give-you-my-respect/) [Erica Goros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-goros/) > [In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/in-the-end-theologians-are-jealous-of-science-for-they-are-aware-that/) [Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [The execution was set for the 29th of March, at nine in the morning. This delay was due to a desire on the part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-execution-was-set-for-the-29th-of-march-at-nine-in-the-morning/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [I started with the belief that every person who came to the laboratory was free to accept or to reject the dictates of authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-started-with-the-belief-that-every-person-who-came-to-the/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [The rationale which accompanies that imposition of male authority euphemistically referred to as 'the battle of the sexes' bears a certain resemblance to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-millett/the-rationale-which-accompanies-that-imposition-of-male-authority/) [Kate Millett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-millett/) > [“We are at the mercy of whoever wields authority over the things we either desire or detest. If you would be free, then, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/we-are-at-the-mercy-of-whoever-wields-authority-over-the-things-we/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Sometimes it's easier for people who are in authority to be authoritarian, because people know where you stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/sometimes-it-s-easier-for-people-who-are-in-authority-to-be/) [Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/) > [The victory of Hamas is not only based on the corruption of the Palestinian Authority. Hamas has a vision and a program, and this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-haniyeh/the-victory-of-hamas-is-not-only-based-on-the-corruption-of-the/) [Ismail Haniyeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-haniyeh/) [Browse all 4,003 Authority quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I can't speak with authority about Emeka Anyaoku. I just didn't know him that well.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bob Hawke" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka-anyaoku-i-just-didn-t-know/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Authority" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka-anyaoku-i-just-didn-t-know/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ce/bob-hawke-7891_authority_i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka_341829.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I can't speak with authority about Emeka Anyaoku. I just didn't know him that well.” — Bob Hawke", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bob Hawke", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I can't speak with authority about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka-anyaoku-i-just-didn-t-know/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/i-can-t-speak-with-authority-about-emeka-anyaoku-i-just-didn-t-know/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```