Unlimited power game

 

 

United Socialist Party presented a bill last week at the Venezuelan Parliament to make presidential terms unlimited. So if the bill is passed, President Hugo Chavez will be able to seek reelections for any number of time he wishes. But does such viability of unlimited reeligibility for ministerial posts in any democracy serve in favour of greater ‘liberal democracy’?

Well, history states otherwise. Similar bills have been tabled in parliaments of almost all 118 of 193 democracies and were thoroughly debated. US President Andrew Johnson tried to amend the constitutional limit of presidential term. India’s popular leader Indira Gandhi raised the same issue in the Parliament. Defenders of the unlimited term, mostly the ruling class, insist that people should have the constitutional right to elect the leader they want and leaders also should have the explicit right to opportunity to serve their people, irrespective of the terms and tenure. It is denied most of the time in most democracies on the grounds that unlimited terms or too long a tenure in the office would result in a power concentration by popular leaders, which again is undemocratic. This has been witnessed in Venezuela. Venezuelans worship Chavez and consider him their messiah who can eliminate their woes. In reality, money generated from oil is going to private companies, mostly owned by his relatives, instead of being invested for the benefit of the people. Other close ones are offered the highest offices (his brother just won the election to become the governor).

Multiple terms or longer tenure in the office have resulted in mixed impacts. On one extreme, Britain’s former Prime Ministers Sir Robert Walpole who served Britain for over 21 years and Margaret Thatcher whose tenure lasted over 11 years, or US President Franklin Roosevelt who held the office for over 12 years have transformed the image of their nations. On other extreme, Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki (with his over 30 year long political career), Uzbekistan's autocratic President Karimov, or the worst ever Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir, continue to destroy their nations. In the democratic history of Kenya, there are politicians like Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka who joined politics at the age of 10 or PM Raila Odinga who was a teenager when he entered politics.

Karimov has dominated Ujbekistan's politics for two decades and is leaving no stone unturned for a third term, violating the constitutional limit. Al-Bashir kept no competitor alive. In such a situation, before passing the bill, Venezuelans should try to find out whether Chavez is their Sir Robert or Kibaki.