This is a big concern indeed. In Italy we have a terrible record of governance and it is absolutely correct to talk about a political caste, especially in some regions. We also had laws made for a single person and attempts to modify the constitution to get the president more power - designed by the same person - but so far there has been no stark turn towards an authoritarian state.
Now Grillo does behave like a little dictator in the M5S and is the face and the voice of the movement but I do think that a lot of it has to do with the understandable fear that other politcal forces - especially on the right - might once again to buy votes and undermine the M5S. While it may sound wild the richest man in politics faces two unrelated trial for doing just that...
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Democracy is an ongoing process and no final, steady state. Sadly looking east towards Hungary, Romania, Ukraine, Belorussia and Russia we have plenty of such examples...
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