YOUR Highnesses, there will be nothing good in us if we do not speak to you frankly. Advising you is our religious duty. The concern of our national interests is the responsibility of every citizen.

As per the Constitution, laws, customs and traditions, the government is responsible for all aspects of life in the country. Therefore to say that ministers are responsible and accountable for their actions is true on one hand.

But on the other hand, Article 55 of the Constitution states that, “The Amir shall exercise his powers by the medium of his Ministers”. He is the head of all powers, and there is no doubt that all ministers are responsible before His Highness the Head of the State, as well as the people through the National Assembly, by virtue of the constitution which also states, “The legislative power is vested in the Amir and the National Assembly based on the Constitution”. This means that the two branches - the executive and the legislative - are the responsibility of the head of state.

According to this rule, the fault of any minister is the indirect responsibility of the ruler. This also extends to legislation, which must be based on strict rules.

Everyone knows that in France, Britain and many democratic countries worldwide, there are laws established 500 or 600 years ago based on the ruler’s responsibility for the actions of his assistants. That is why it has been modified hundreds of times in order to harmonize with reality and achieve the highest levels of justice and transparency, as well as to fill the loopholes through which corruption can infiltrate.

According to our religion, trust is a great responsibility. Allah has mentioned it in the Quran in these verses - “Indeed, we offered the  trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, and they declined to carry it and feared it; but man carried it. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant”. “Indeed, Allah commands you to render trust to whom it is due. When you judge between people, judge fairly. Excellent is that which Allah instructs you. Indeed, Allah is ever Hearing and Seeing”.

Because this matter is immensely great, He made it the standard for the success of nations. It is one of the features that distinguished the prophets, as the Quran highlighted, when giving the example of Prophet Moses (PBUH) when he passed by the well of Madyan, how he was faithful to the sheep of his employer and how the noble verse described him through the testimony of the shepherd’s daughter who said, “O my father, hire him for it is better for you to hire the strong and the trustworthy”.

It is unfortunate that officials during the past years lost the trust when the matter was entrusted to those who did not deserve it, especially in the government before the current one, which gave the “needle and thread” to the National Assembly, and resigned from its executive role. This caused the country to fall into a major crisis, as there is no progress in the aspects of development in education, health, or economic interest and infrastructure.

Rather, all we have seen is systematic looting of public money, the appointment of officials who are not worthy of the position by means of “wasta” in departments and institutions, and forged certificates to loot the largest possible amount of people’s rights.

No one in Kuwait was surprised by this because daily events reveal the buying of votes, and the involvement of MPs in it. Therefore, it was natural for us to reach this slope of legislation based on extortion.

What should the leader and the official, and even the citizens, hope for from a legislator who buys people’s conscience with a handful of money, and subsequently becomes the representative of the people?!

Your Highnesses, it is said that the fifth Umayyad Caliph, Omar bin Abdulaziz, wanted to appoint a man whose appearance made him seem qualified for the job. Before that, he wanted to be certain about his integrity, so he asked one of his aides to test him.

The aide was alone with the man and said to him, “You know my status is high with the Caliph ... So what would you give me if I mentioned you to him?”

He replied, “I will give you my one year’s salary if Caliph Omar appoints me”.

So the aide went and told this to Caliph Omar, who said, “We were deceived by his appearance. We will not appoint him”.

The keenness of Caliph Omar bin Abdulaziz comes from his fear of the greatness of the trust entrusted to him, in pursuit of the integrity of the state. Within months of assuming power, he made the state enjoy a surplus of funds, which were distributed in the right way to the citizens.

Today, Kuwait suffers from a large financial deficit and the dissipation of its wealth, which affects various aspects of life. The annual waste reaches billions, either through random employment, or subsidies that go into the pockets of adults while the young do not benefit from them.

Undoubtedly, this will lead to the depletion of the future generation reserve in a few years. This means that citizens will then become migrant workers in other countries if the situation continues as it is.

Your Highnesses, we are heading to parliamentary elections after a few days, as well as a new Cabinet in light of what the ballot boxes will produce.

In order for the two authorities not to return to the absurd struggle, and so that public money does not continue to be wasted, the need to choose honest ministers is one of the pillars of the great trust entrusted to you.

Because the measures taken in the past few months indicated firmness and determination, what the people of Kuwait hope for is an executive authority that is capable of fixing what has been ruined by an age of absurdity as a result of the failure to preserve and uphold integrity in this regard.

Therefore, Your Highnesses, throw your staffs, and perhaps a gliding serpent will appear to devour corruption and the corrupt.

By Ahmed Al-Jarallah

Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times