The past two weeks have thrown Malawi into heated debates on the true meaning of democracy. One key issue is whether the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) MPs who visited President Joyce Banda to express their support at her home on 7 April, well before she took office as Malawi’s new President, abused their role to gain power and favours from ‘the President to be’.
This ODI Opinion reflects on transition to a new Chinese leadership. Charting the rise and fall of Bo Xilai in China's political arena, discussion explores the value placed on charisma in generating legitimate and credible leadership.
Discussion suggests that what we are seeing in China, a country that has achieved some phenomenal developmental progress in the last 30 years, may suggest to some degree a broad rejection of charisma as a legitimating feature of political rule.
