INDEED, when it comes to elections, the intended form of by elections and consultations about elections means the same thing. In this regard, I refer to the decision issued by the Parliament’s legislative committee; once they try to pass it, there won’t be anyone to stand for us, not even the esteemed government. The decision is to criminalize the consultative election law, the same way its twin – the by-election law – was criminalized.
It is as though the beneficiaries of the by-election law decided to brainstorm and come up with another form of law that will circumvent the prohibition of by-elections, and the genius minds came up with the idea of giving it a new name – the consultative law. In reality, both these laws represent the two sides of the same coin. In other words, the only thing that is different about these two laws is the name.
We see in the tents and diwaniyas of our honorable tribesmen that they throw their headbands, as a sign of approval, at one of the candidates, replacing the concept of hidden nomination boxes. This gives us the champion of the by-election/consultative law, who will be forever indebted to those who enabled him to win the tribes’ approval. This will render him to set aside the interest of the country and the society as a whole in order to promote the interests of those he represents (the tribe) and its men.
Chairman of the Parliament’s Legislative Committee, the uncompromising MP Khaled Al-Shatti said, “The idea of the parliamentary proposal is a brilliant move to get rid of the participants in the by-elections, because it shows and sorts its results before the general elections that represent the truth of the nation’s will. Whoever hurries for something before its due time is often punished by being deprived thereof.
By-elections are prohibited and it is not permissible to circumvent its prohibition by changing its name, because the important thing is substance and content. Also, byelections contradict an important constitutional principle – a member of the National Assembly represents the entire nation and not a specific segment of that nation.” Then we hear those who came out of the womb of these sinister elections; unfortunately, the parliamentary immunity of one of them was lifted for assaulting security officers.
Another son of the by-elections said without any reservations that he refuses because it is unreasonable to use the National Assembly’s election law as a tool for racial exclusion, and that he will address it if it is presented to the Parliament. The proposal portends a very serious objective, which is to preserve electoral interests that serve the centers of power in the electoral constituencies.
He considers it to be a direct interference in the upcoming elections! The MP who is a product of the by-elections/consultative law believes “the proposal is dead on arrival, and is difficult to implement it on the ground, because all components of the society are practicing consultations, including the Muslim Brotherhood Group, Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Salafists, cooperative societies, sports clubs, unions, and political blocs.”
These MPs and those with their mentality need to understand that, for the past three decades at least, these by-elections and consultative meetings only brought to us people’s representatives who mediate for their constituents or their tribesmen. They gave us representatives undeservingly. Truth be told, “Before the current corruption crisis that we are enduring, corruption was ashamed of you.”
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e-mail: [email protected]
By Ali Ahmed Al-Baghli
Former Minister of Oil
