Dynastic politics.

OF the two families that have ruled Pakistan since the last 50 years, which have seen two interludes by military strongmen, the Bhuttos have been around since 1971 (51 years) while the Sharif family has held sway since 1981 (41 years). Nawaz Sharif was selected and groomed by military dictator Gen Zia to counter the Bhutto family. Over the years, their political 'maturity' has led them to shed their traditional animosity and join hands to decimate the third force rearing its head to challenge their dominance.

Dynastic rule is not unusual in the world. If we look around our own region, the Nehrus ruled India for several decades post partition until Modi came to power in 2014. Jawaharlal Nehru was premier for nearly 17 years; his daughter Indira Gandhi was PM for a total of nearly 16 years. Manmohan Singh as a Nehru proxy was prime minister for 10 years and Rajiv Gandhi for another five. Thus the Nehrus dominated politics in India for 47 out of 67 years after independence until Modi came along in 2014. The family is down but not out.

In the Philippines too, there have been a number of political dynasties, the more famous them being the Aquino and Marcos families. Ferdinand Marcos was president for 21 years and was ignominiously ousted on allegations of corruption against him and his wife. But the public has forgotten that, electing his son as president this year while his daughter is also prominent in politics.

Benigno Aquino Jr was a leading figure in the opposition against the Marcos regime. When he was assassinated, the sympathy vote led to his wife Corazon Aquino becoming president. Several years later, her son Benigno Aquino also served as president.

Hereditary politics is common in South Asia.

Sri Lanka is a classic example. For the past two decades, Mahinda Rajapaksa has loomed large, first as president for a decade between 2005 and 2015 and then as PM. Up until recently, one Rajapaksa brother was president, another prime minister, a third defence minister and another finance minister. After the recent crisis, the president dropped his PM brother, followed by another, but the family's grip continues.

Earlier, the Bandaranaike family held sway in Sri Lanka. S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was PM from 1956 to 1959. After his assassination, his wife Sirimavo Bandaranaike was PM three times intermittently from 1960 to 2000. In 1994, their daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga became president and remained so for 11 years. From 1994 to 2000, mother and...