Reading and writing fill in the blanks
Leadership is all about being granted permission by others to lead their thinking. It is a bestowed moral authority that gives the right to organise and direct the efforts of others. But moral authority does not come from simply managing people effectively or communicating better or being able to motivate. It comes from many , including being authentic and genuine, having integrity, and showing a real and deep understanding of the business in question. All these build confidence.
Leaders lose moral authority for three reasons: they behave ; they become plagued by self-doubt and lose their conviction; or they are blinded by power, lose self-awareness and thus lose with those they lead as the context around them changes.
Having said all this, it has to be assumed that if someone becomes a leader, at some point they understood the difference between right and wrong. It is up to them to by a moral code and up to us to ensure that the moment we suspect they do not, we fire them or vote them out.