19/07/2023
19/07/2023
HAVE we entered the era of ruminating on slogans and the pointlessness of shedding light on problems that the country suffers from? Or is the reality that we live in different from that of the government whose program is devoid of any reference to a number of crises and the way to solve them? From 1992 until today, with each one of them, we have read words that inspire hope, rendering one to almost say that this Council of Ministers relies on it to reform and get the country out of its crises. However, as soon as the ink of the government statement dries up and the National Assembly discusses it, it goes back to its usual state of bickering and quarreling with the parliamentarians.
Indeed, the current Cabinet suffered from two successive setbacks in less than two weeks and has become lame through successive resignations, which do not indicate the possibility of achieving what can be relied upon. Citizens are fed up with the slogans coined by successive governments, because reality has always belied them. While people are waiting for openness, the past governments permitted the heresy of negative phenomena, which was preceded by the ban on co-education in schools and universities, and the financial repercussions it left on the state. When the country was closed as a result of shortsighted approaches in this regard, another heresy appeared - to ban pregnant women and those over 60 years of age from visiting the country.
Despite the successive governments wasting $200 billion over a period of ten years, the infrastructure is still the worst, at least among the Gulf states and the countries that possess wealth such as Kuwait. When voices called for awarding major tenders to world-renowned companies, which have implemented many major projects in various countries of the world, the governments instead clung to the local agent. The result was an increase in the costs of infrastructure projects, becoming much higher than that of similar projects executed in other Gulf countries, which eliminated the phenomenon of bribery and corruption through firm decisions and the abandonment of the local agent.
Also, those countries did not turn a blind eye to any of the corrupt, because their goal is the future, continuity, and the strength of the state, not the interests of individuals. It is true that one of the parliamentary committees recommended the abolition of the local agent. Here we say it explicitly - This law will witness many obstacles and will not see the light, or at least there will be a great delay. This is because “companies and money sharks” will be waiting for it in fear of losing their ability to control projects, which are like a luxury cake that they monopolize.
With these facts, how can an economy be promoted through slogans? How can a country with all the capabilities, but lacks the right decision, use reasonable and scientific plans to manage the country if the executive officials do not have a clear vision? In this regard, there are many questions that observers and citizens ask. For example, what is the wisdom behind closing the country?
Here we present an example from reality. One of the oil companies operating in the south of Iraq wanted to make an agreement with a hotel in Kuwait for some of its workers to stay because the distance from Kuwait to the site is less than the distance to the site from Baghdad and Basra. When the concerned ministry was contacted in this regard, it refused to issue specific visit visas for these workers, except on the condition that they hold high degrees.
It also refused to grant visas to representatives of major banks and companies because some of them are young women or do not have degrees. With such a mentality, how can the economy of a country like Kuwait be managed, which is in need of every opportunity to revive it? Isn’t the economy the focal point, or is it not one of the priorities of the government, which does not know until today how to fill vacancies in institutions and ministries, due to which most of them are managed on acting capacities?
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