Americans can breathe a sigh of relief – at least it’s not the only country with politicians and politicians-wannabe jockeying for the top gig. Russia is the latest storyline to emerge, with New Jersey Nets basketball team owner Mikhail Prokhorov declaring his intent to compete against Vladimir Putin, - the anointed one - next year.
For some odd reason, many people outside Moscow will think of this as a quasi-suicidal mission, especially in the face of all the constitutional hoops, aka reforms, that Putin had to go through to make himself eligible to run for the presidency. Of course the very fact that one man is powerful enough to supposedly realign the stars in his favor is ample reason for others to be concerned with what Russia is turning into.
The third richest man is taking on a risky proposition, and he knows it. The underlying assertion being that Russian politicians are so crooked and sinister that it wouldn’t be farfetched to frame Prokhorov in a criminal circus and lock him away in jail forever. I have to admit, the more “Mission Impossible” movies I watch, the more I believe anything is indeed possible in Moscow and the Kremlin. But that is Hollywood’s spin, - perhaps with no bearing whatsoever on the reality.
The real questions is, what will make the Russia’s third richest man worth an excess of $18 billion - decide to take on a such low-paying privacy-invading thankless job? I can’t imagine warren Buffet running for Mayor of Omaha, especially when he can simply blink and cause the world financial markets to panic.
If you ever thought the United States, Greece, Spain or even Italy has issues; Russia has enough drama to make Kim Kardashian jealous. Of course there is a huge anti-Putin faction across Russia and elsewhere in the world, and they will love nothing more than see anyone other than Dmitry Medvedev or Vladimir Putin get the gig. But Mikhail Prokhorov?
Just last week, Putin's party was hit from all sides in the parliamentary elections, and many people are beginning to see windows of opportunity for a viable contender to emerge. Russian politics is shrouded in its own brand of conspiracy theories and suspicion, but it will take a little more than sheer popularity to outlast the Putin engine. He didn’t earn the nickname “the anointed one” for playing chess and shaking hands.
On a much lighter note, if I was Russian, I will like to see how Prokhorov win over Orlando Magic star Dwight Howard to the New Jersey Nets, before he earns any “street cred” for a deal maker.
Mikhail Prokhorov is taking a big gamble, but the Russians may be taking an even bigger gamble if there is no formidable contender in Moscow to face off with Putin. Someone has to do it, why not Mikhail Prokhorov?
