Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow has been the president of Turkmenistan since December 21, 2006. His self-given title 'Arkadag', means patron.
His detractors call his a torture-approving totalitarian dictator.
However, the president of Turkmenistan enjoys the support of two of the biggest importers of Turkmen natural gas -- Russia and Iran. He is also supported by countries like Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia.
In Turkmenistan, Berdimuhamedow does not have to deal with a lot of opposition as it is virtually banned.
As the country's minister of health, Berdimuhamedow supervised one of the worst healthcare infrastructures in Central Asia. He denied a large section of the population healthcare by closing all hospitals outside the capital city and replacing more than 15,000 trained doctors with military physicians.
Continuing the tradition of Turkmenistan's late president Saparmurat Niyazov, Berdimuhamedow arrested, detained without trial, tortured, exiled, and killed his political opponents.
Berdimuhamedow has also not freed political prisoners wrongly imprisoned under Niyazov's regime.
