The truth in the aphorism that the guilty are afraid was animated recently with the case of the former Peruvian President, Mr Alberto Fujimore, who was recently jailed for six years by Peruvian court on charges of human rights abuses and corruption.
But for his guilt, no man having ruled his country fairly and kindly should be fleeing his country after service to his fatherland. On the contrary, a former president should walk graciously into the nation’s hall of fame, and like an oracle, become one frequently consulted on core national issues, as a true statesman.
But with Fujimore, the story is the exact opposite. His government having collapsed in Year 2000, he fled his country for Japan, his father’s root, and hibernated there for five years. He later moved to Chile where he sought asylum. But the Peruvian government insisted on his extradition so he could answer for his actions while in government. Although Fujimore, 69, for two years tried to raise legal stakes to block or frustrate his extradition, the Chilean Supreme Court sealed his fate when it finally ordered his extradition, following which he was bundled to face his accusers in Peru.
While in power for the ten years he ruled Peru, Fujimore was like a wild dictator. Like all despots, he played host to the twin vices of human rights abuses and corruption. He ran a deadly killer squad which spilled blood with relish. Expectedly, opposition was muscled and terrorized. In the killing binge, students, academics, and even children were not spared. The Chilean court noted that in all the massacres, two notoriously stood out: the Barrios Altos murder and the La Cantuta murder, both in the early 90’s.
For several years the Peruvian government under Fujomore carried out mass murder, and “disappearing” thousands of activists and ordinary people amidst many other atrocities.
How can a man so malevolent hope to have peace after leaving the temporary shield offered by official power? And so, Fujimore literally began running from pillar to post, trying to battle the consequences of his actions. But just recently, it snapped, as Alberto Fujimore, was found guilty by the Court and was finally jailed for six years.
This is a lesson for those in power and those who crave to be in power. Many a times, those in power act and carry-on as if they will be in power forever. Thus they rule most ruthlessly, riding roughshod over the people, robbing the treasury blind, and committing all forms of unimaginable atrocities, simply because they enjoy immunity.
But as it has shown with the experiences of the former governors, no immunity lasts forever. So, a day certainly will come, when those who have served will be invited to account for their stewardship while in office.
Where such account is adjudged satisfactory, they walk into the hall of fame with grace and candour, but where they fall short of expected standard, they pay for it, sometimes in jail, like Fujimore is now doing.
We call on all leaders to always be conscious of the day of accountability and indeed, history, and above all, how the people whom they ruled perceive them. Little wonder that several leaders, after leaving office can neither walk the streets, nor ever live a happy life after, as their past hunts them.Fujimore is a free but essential lesson
