We all have heroes or heroines of one shape or form. Some worship celebrities, some politicians - even though it is getting increasingly difficult to distinguish the two - some have animals as their heroes / heroines and indeed some only view their God or gods as their ultimate hero / heroin. To be one's hero it would seem, it takes something special. Special in that such qualities would not be found elsewhere, that is, there has to be something unique for someone or indeed something to achieve this status.
People pick their heroes for various reasons, but these common determinants: levels of education, political and religious beliefs, and cultural background. The only thing that all heroes or heroines share is that they all tend to have charismatic qualities of some sort.
Such has been the case throughout existence of human kind. Today we are able to talk of Abraham Lincoln a century after his assassination for instance. One other common thing with charismatic people is that they tend to be leaders of some sort: Political tyrants, in a shape of Idi Amin or Adolf Hitler, freedom fighters, in a shape of Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr, The Dalai Lama, and some are humanitarians like Mother Teresa.
While such charismatic people are very important to the progress of human kind, as they provide inspiration and encouragement, I tend to agree with Max Weber's (one of the classic sociologists, leaved between 1881 - 1961) view that for the progress of human society, such leaders are not ideal. Charismatic powers are not transferable. The death of charismatic leader more or less signals the fall of dynasty that they oversaw. Instead, Weber suggests that charismatic people should be replaced by legal rational, which is the rule of law that every leader, regardless of their personal grit, should follow and abide by. We can draw this example from Thabo Mbeki's succession of Nelson Mandela. Mbeki did not posses the personal grit as Mandela but he was literate enough to rule through the some law that Mandela used.
The rule of law is so powerful that it can allow people that are very different, competent wise, to hold the same position and be equally good or bad. If one were to look at the striking difference of the 44 occupants of the “White House” so far, one would look at Weber in agreement, and uphold the rule of law; and I think Americas rule of law has truly epitomised Weber’s vision. I am not eager on naming names, but Bush Jr. was never the same character as J.F Kennedy, just as J.F.K was never a Lincoln and yet they share the same title: former USA president.
Here we have some serious lessons that political parties in my lovely country, Malawi should draw upon. Watching from a distance it would appear that the main three political parties in the next elections, Malawi Congress Party (MCP), United Democratic Front (UDF), and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have their larger than life leaders that cannot be challenged or dislodged from their leadership positions.
Discourse analysis of Malawi media and popular culture (mainly music) would provide evidence to my suspicion: Muluzi (UDF) is referred to as Atcheya (the chairman), which is nothing but a populist approach. Mutharika (DPP) is known as Mose Walero (today's Moses, in reference to Biblical Moses on his liberation of 'children of Israel'), Which, is yet another populist approach, and Tembo (MCP). Has over the years managed to get rid of everyone who poses a potential threat to his leadership in the party.
Such descriptions, as Atcheya, Mose Walero and unshaken dominance of Tembo has to be opposed if we are to progress, as a nation. We don’t need charismatic leaders anymore. Political parties in Malawi need proper structures that would rid of everyone seeking to create personal or family dynasties of these political parties.