After me the deluge, say all autocrats

President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan says if the army is sought to be downsized and kept of governance, there would be a Lebanon-like situation in Pakistan.

The statement is a euphemism for his assessment that if he is not there to rule the country, there will be chaos.

He has been synonymous with the Army, be it in the title of the General or the President of the country. He cannot dispense with the military flourishes. For him, peace comes through force. Which means when he is there at the helm of affairs, Pakistan will be peaceful. Otherwise, there would be the deluge, if his argument is to be taken at face value.

There has not been peace as claimed by Musharraf. India had to wage wars with Pakistan when Generals were calling the shots there.

It seems Musharraf does not subscribe to the view that the star-studded Generals are becoming a rarity in the globalised world in which democracy, with all its faults, is the beacon light for the people.

Any power-monger does not give up authority, once he tastes brutal supremacy. He would invent reasons to cling on to power. He would not admit that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

In the face of human propensity to keep the post for eternity, what a marvel we have in the American system where the President can enjoy power only for two consecutive terms!

If the system allowed, Bill Clinton would have continued as President for many more terms, in spite of his peccadilloes, which the people forgave.

If history allows a sort of peculiarity, perhaps Bill Clinton would be able to make a visit to White House in a different capacity, as the spouse of the American President.

For the first time in the history of America there might be a woman President. The next election is scheduled to be held in 2008. It is most likely that Hillary Clinton would be a candidate. Condoleeza Rice could be her opponent. I believe if they contest, Hillary Clinton would walk away with the post. Well, this is only an aside.

Why the U S President, the most powerful person on Planet Earth, does not feel like Musharraf about retaining the post for eternity?

Musharraf’s “elder brother” has been there in Cuba, at the backyard of the US. During the cold war era, he enjoyed much of the publicity blitzkrieg of a puny country taking on the most powerful nation. But then, he had the backing of the former Soviet Union and the entire Eastern bloc. It is a mystery how he managed to survive after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Forbes magazine had given out information about Fidel Castro being a billionaire. Castro had promptly denied the allegation. Now when he is not physically fit to rule, he has handed over power to his younger brother Raul Castro . He gets the reins of the ruling Communist Party, the post of commander in chief of the armed forces and president of the executive council of the state.

The 80 year-old Castro has been ruling Cuba for the last 50 years. He has not found anyone else fit to rule the country than the 75-year-old Raul Castro, his brother. What a tragedy it is for the countrymen of Cuba? What a tragedy would it be for the countrymen of Pakistan if Musharraf wants to continue for eternity !