Who is popular today?

Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum: One of the pre-eminent leaders of our time who took his country from a little backwater oil-producing emirate with rapidly declining reserves to a foremost tourist destination and an extraordinarily high per-capita income.
Lee Hsien Loong: Son of the late Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore and himself current prime minister (PM) of Singapore. He is almost universally acknowledged as leading a corruption-free Government in a country with one of the world's highest per-capita income, despite no oil reserves or other natural resource wealth. His father focused on educating the population and the current PM brilliantly converted that vision into national wealth.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf: former president of Liberia, whose signature accomplishment was paying off her country's national debt before leaving office after 12 years. In 2006, she became the first woman head of Government in Africa.
P J Patterson: As the longest-serving prime minister of Jamaica until his retirement in 2006, he is a trusted statesman and Caricom consultant. He once served as Caricom special envoy to Haiti and retains a keen interest in Haitian affairs.