But to be clear, secondly: the purpose of democracy is not to be democratic. Democracy is a method. The purpose is a social order of equality in which all citizens enjoy security and inclusion, and adequate governance to maintain and improve that order. We humans need to be governed, but government is also dangerous to our liberty. We subscribe to democracy because we believe it, being under popular control, is likely to protect citizens against oppression and because, it being governance by consent, is likely to be effective in delivery. The quality of democratic rule is not measured primarily by the degree of democracy but by the effectiveness of any particular democratic regime in delivering democratic purpose.

Read the article in the Cairo Review.