Cyprus Needs A Statesman Now

Democracy, like most other forms of government, is not perfect and sometimes encourages bad leadership which ultimately develops into a modern form of elected dictatorship.
Under such a system, it has been shown that the electorate are merely used by politicians to gain power and once in power, they ignore those who put them in office in the first place. The principled idea where those who embark on a political career must possess knowledge of moral values to enable them improve the character of the community no longer counts. Most politicians will fail miserably.
Instead of doing what is ethically right for the country, democracy suffers quite badly and it will take a giant effort to remedy this deficiency.
Meanwhile, citizens are deprived of one of the most important principles in democracy; the right to a referendum. that solely belongs to the electorate and certainly not to the politicians or the government, and yet, for political expediency, it’s being ignored.
This important people’s veto is deemed to be the cornerstone of democracy and it can be used to prevent a government that may act contrary to the welfare of the nation. If people are told the truth they are capable of making fundamental decisions affecting their lives including the state, yet those in power have surreptitiously manipulated the democratic process to accommodate party political objectives.
Consequently democracy, which aspires to equal representation on the principle of “one-man-one-vote”, has mutated into an elected autocracy where might is right. This is quite apparent in politically immature countries where they are governed under a pseudo-presidential regime. A victim of circumstances, the democratic principle intended to establish a government by the people for the people does not really exist; some countries perform better and worse than others.
It is questionable whether the Presidential political system in Cyprus is a better representative form of government than a parliamentary system. Under the Presidential regime, the head of the state has a greater opportunity of becoming an autocrat without accountability, whereas, a prime minister is less likely, because the law and his/her own political party prevents that likelihood. But, most importantly a bad premier can be ousted by parliament if necessary.
In a true sense, the existing political structure in Cyprus has created a self-serving social “divide and rule” system headed by one man who has immense authority over the Constitution and all others. This constitutional stranglehold over society and country needs to be either scrapped or the entire constitution revised from start to finish.
If the nation is to grow and prosper, doing away with the presidential system and the existing flawed constitution is the first step towards a fairer society. Meanwhile, rightly or wrongly, elected dictatorship is creeping into the mainstream political system and legitimized by the judiciary.
In a sense, a Republic is an archaic form of government. In today’s conditions it demands a complete rethink to ascertain if it truly serves its intended purpose, namely the welfare of the country and citizens, or the welfare of a plutocracy, political parties, presidents and those close to the head of state.
Since a Republican form of government is based on a generic democracy, it provides the mechanism for abuse of power and it’s no wonder how some leaders often see themselves as above the law of the land. One recent example is the behavior of the previous president of Cyprus who adamantly ignored parliament’s majority vote of no confidence calling for his resignation.
It appears that citizens time and again are at the mercy of political parties whose powers and policies often conflict with what is right and the rule of law. It’s not uncommon for an elected president to assign political allies and personal friends in key government positions as a payoff for favors or political support. Instead of encouraging a merit system, this nepotistic practice has become as normal as having breakfast.
It will take a wise leader with great foresight to initiate constitutional changes to transform the present intransigent political system into a better one. To find such a true statesman who can make his constant object to improve rather than to please an audience is a rare commodity indeed but as hard as it may sound, it’s not impossible.
Cyprus desperately needs to find this one charismatic statesman to lead the nation forward. With the overwhelming support of the people, a leader of this stature will then take the bull by its horns and introduce a new revolutionary constitution so the nation can reinvent itself and become a nation that offers hope and security.
Understandably, a nation cannot function without its figurehead but certainly it does not call for that person to possess supreme powers over others and especially without accountability or transparency.
Shielded by an antiquated political immunity privileges, presidents and politicians often act above the law and yet they cannot be prosecuted. It is for this very reason why the present-day pseudo-democratic system chips away at people’s rights with little chance of any improvement.
The introduction of the presidential regime, which has been enshrined into the divisive Cyprus Constitution  inundated with racist clauses, was the brainchild of a British mastermind.
For long-term political objectives, it envisioned a permanent split between the Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots and the application of “divide and rule” policy has been a great success indeed.
Consequently, a new Constitution, which will also include the Right to a Referendum without its President, may provide a much better political system on the basis of the Rule of Law and not the Rule of Man.