Irelands most respected and famed 70-year-old elderly poet and former arts minister Michael D. Higgins will become Irelands next president after his main rival conceded defeat on October 28. Higgins will succeed Belfast-born Mary McAleese who has served the maximum of two seven-year terms as the figurehead of the republic which required an 85 billion euro international bailout last year.Congratulations, Michael Higgins, your past performance as arts minister has proved that you are not only a poet who lives in the world of imaginations, but the words can be translated into reality as well. Ronald Reagan, considered one of the most successful statesmen of the United States, was basically a film actor, who defeated the USSR and Communism. This is how the nations honour their laureates, teachers and authors. Well done Higgins. F Z KHAN, Islamabad, October 29.