Leaders … develop the country under the sound of cannons and enjoy it when songs of peace play

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THE financial cycle of any country is similar to how blood circulates in the human body. Any defect in its circulation leads to cessation of the cycle.

Historically, experts have been keen on laying down development plans to avoid any imbalance in the financial cycle, and ensure its continuous movement in an effort to increase production and the wealth of the State which reflects on the citizen.

Testimony to the aforementioned is the story of the residents of a poor small village who depended on borrowing to survive, so they were immersed in debt.

One day, a tourist visited the village and stayed in its only modest hotel. A room in that hotel cost a hundred dollars, so the man put this amount on the reception counter; then went to inspect the rooms upstairs to choose a suitable one.

Meanwhile, the owner of the hotel took the opportunity.  He took the hundred dollars and ran to the butcher next door to pay his debt, then the latter took the money and hurried to the cattle dealer to pay him the rest of his dues.

The cattle trader took the money and gave it to the fodder merchant to pay off his debt. This went to the truck driver who brought fodder from a far country to pay his delayed dues. The driver, in turn, went to the hotel, where he settled his bills.

Upon finishing his inspection tour, the tourist did not like any of the rooms, so he demanded for his money back.  The owner of the hotel gave it to him and then he left the village.

This is how these people paid their debts, while the money returned to the tourist who can be considered the Central Bank, banks and Ministry of Finance that are not tasked to hoard money, but to enhance it through the assets abroad and at home.

Therefore, governments should lay down development programs to move the local financial cycle, which eventually returns to its funds.  The most dangerous thing that countries could face is miserliness, because it leads to corruption. According to the popular proverb, “the needy is reckless until his need is sustained.” Once such a person reaches his lowest point, he finds nothing but theft and embezzlement if he is an employee; thus, he spreads this bad behavior among employees and the public, so it turns into a social habit that cannot be eliminated after it became popular.

Unfortunately, we have this model in Kuwait.  This happened after the State held its hand to stop spending on development projects.  It was satisfied with searching for solutions that are in fact palliatives due to the lack of diversification of income sources on one hand, and on the other hand, due to the failure of financial experts and concerned officials to confront the economic and financial crisis correctly.  This led to what looks like clots in the financial and economic body.

Without a doubt, the welfare of the State is the welfare of the people. The less burdens they bear, the more willing they are to give.

However, the biggest door of corruption will open if there are about 120,000 citizens suffering from financial hardship and are being prosecuted because of their debts and loans; in addition to thousands of warrant of arrest requests and ‘travel bans’, while billions are wasted on trivial matters.

At a time the finance ministers — at least over the past five years — have been talking about the accumulated financial deficit, and that “soon we won’t have enough liquidity to pay salaries,” they did not take advantage of the historical opportunities that emerged in the last two decades, especially after the global crisis in 2008 and the Corona pandemic, which some other Gulf countries have grasped with great skill. These countries strengthened their strategic assets abroad and launched pioneering development projects to keep the specter of financial decline away from them.

A few days ago, the British Prime Minister announced the resignation of the Chancellor of the Exchequer for his failure to face the turmoil in the financial markets in the past few weeks after the announcement of the mini-budget.

In the same manner, some ministers and financial experts in the Gulf countries were dismissed from their positions after failing to realize the development goals set by the State or for not taking advantage of an investment opportunity because they believed that keeping the money is the most important way of facing the crisis.

For us, the failed financial officials remain in their positions and became stronger as days went by. This is due to the fact that they are not worried about any disciplinary action against them. Consequently, they continue to misuse public money, while their potbellies keep on growing.  In fact, the assets of a nation are manifestations of its wealth and its strength.

Meanwhile, the monetary system is a hindrance because, according to the normal global cycle, currencies lose their purchasing power over time. This is the reason why we have been making this call for a long time — the financial system should strengthen Kuwait’s assets abroad and at home, including entertainment facilities.  Those responsible for public finance, especially the heads of councils, used to hear these words from the right ear and let them go out of the left ear, as if we were addressing walls.

The greatest development projects begin under the sounds of cannons. The seasoned merchant takes advantage of the crisis to increase his wealth and he will be in charge once the situation calms down.

Thus, it is very important for leaders in Kuwait to look at this aspect and instruct the executive officials to speed up the launching of development projects and open the coffers to support the economic cycle in the country. Opportunities are like birds, they quickly fly away.

By Ahmed Al-Jarallah

Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times

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