NOT SINCE George Vassiliou was in office has Cyprus had a president without serious health problems. In fact he was the only president, in the 54 years of the Republic, who was in good health throughout his five-year term. Of those who came before him, Archbishop Makarios died on the job, while the late Spyros Kyprianou was in an out of hospital regularly during his ten years in office, suffering from a host of health problems.
Those who followed were also plagued by health problems. The late Glafcos Clerides also spent considerable time in clinics, while the late Tassos Papadopoulos visited the US for treatment, keeping the condition of his health a well-guarded secret. Demetris Christofias had undergone open heart surgery and a kidney transplant before being elected and, paradoxically, managed to get through his term without any major health scares. However, the medication he had to take every day, just to keep going, could have had an effect on his judgment and decision-making.
Now, President Anastasiades has successfully undergone heart surgery in the US and will be unable to perform his duties for a month or two. But even when he returns to office, sometime in the New Year, will he be in a condition to cope with the daily pressure and stress of a very taxing job that requires much energy and stamina to perform properly. Would he not be putting his health at risk performing such a high-pressure job?
The health of the president has never been an issue in Cyprus, but it should be. This is the most important job in the country, the president expected to take decisions that would affect everyone’s future. Could we afford to have someone, whose health problems and medication could cloud his judgment, taking these decisions? Would we all not feel more secure if we knew the person taking the big decisions that would affect our lives was in good health, mentally stable and approached matters with a clear mind?
We suspect that the board of a big public company whose CEO had heart surgery would have given him or her a generous retirement pay-off because shareholders would be wary of having someone with a serious health condition, requiring daily medication, in charge. Politics is different – a president is elected for a pre-specified term during which he could not be removed from office unless it was medically proven that he had no control of his mental faculties.
There is no such issue for Anastasiades and we will all be hoping he makes a speedy and full recovery. But perhaps in the next presidential elections, the health history and condition of each candidate will be an election issue.
