Perhaps this is the dilemma that all aspiring politicians face in developing democracies where politics is a blood sport, quite literally. Even the most educated and effective leaders are of no use to their country if they can’t get elected, or if they are immediately overthrown in a coup. Yet the things you have to do to “make it” in politics in Afghanistan tend to be the kind of things that taint you in the long run. What it takes to get elected in Afghanistan (and survive in office) turns out to be quite different than what it takes to manage an economy or draw up an effective five-year plan.
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