From Fareed Zakaria in Foreign Affairs from 1997,  The Rise of Illiberal Democracy:

(this may require registration to read the whole article which I encourage. )

Finally, and perhaps more important, power accumulated to do good can be used subsequently to do ill. When Fujimori disbanded parliament, his approval ratings shot up to their highest ever. But recent opinion polls suggest that most of those who once approved of his actions now wish he were more constrained. In 1993 Boris Yeltsin famously (and literally) attacked the Russian parliament, prompted by parliament’s own unconstitutional acts. He then suspended the constitutional court, dismantled the system of local governments, and fired several provincial governors. From the war in Chechnya to his economic programs, Yeltsin has displayed a routine lack of concern for constitutional procedures and limits. He may well be a liberal democrat at heart, but Yeltsin’s actions have created a Russian super-presidency. We can only hope his successor will not abuse it.

HKO

This is the problem when the ends justifies the means. When a benevolent dictator ceases to be benevolent, he is still a dictator.  We should be cautious about bestowing power on any position  unless we can see our worst nightmare in that position.

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