I HOPE that our words regarding the recent ministerial changes will provide reassurance to those concerned. Over the last 50 years, Kuwait has navigated on a journey of interests that were tribal, sectarian, or familial. During this time, legislation and decisions often favored specific categories of people, which negatively impacted the political, economic, and social administration of the country. Successive parliaments have imposed these laws and the governments often yielded to them instead of rejecting them to prevent any changes to Kuwait’s social, economic, and political nature. This has contributed to the backwardness we are currently facing. Undoubtedly, parliamentarians have the right to operate in a populist manner, as they seek to serve their interests and remain in their parliamentary seat for as long as possible. They hence rejected all measures that could alleviate the burden on public funds, irrespective of whether they were related to an increase in fees or other constraints.

However, this situation cannot continue indefinitely. There will eventually be a moment of truth when parliamentarians, ministers, and heads of cabinets must be held accountable for the extent of their harm to Kuwait. We continue to reiterate that this situation does not build a strong state that is capable of dealing with global changes. We are faced with multiple deficits in administration, finance, projects, infrastructure, strategic areas, and international relations. There is no doubt that decisive solutions are urgently needed.

We must begin by dealing with the issues created by parliamentary populism, ministerial inaction, and governmental hesitation, through the correction of decisions and the amendment of laws. This has also led to the proliferation of bodies and councils, now numbering 25 or more, most of which, if not all, serve self-interests and aim to seize administrative control. These entities often promote partisan ideologies, as seen in various laws, such as the co-education ban, negative phenomena committee or the increase in tribal and sectarian interests.

This situation has either revealed the huge corruption or the personal interests of influential individuals who have placed their allies into key institutions. To mask these issues, they all raised the slogan of “not touching the citizen’s pocket” or “preventing the removal of subsidies”.

Meanwhile, the consciences of some individuals were bought off with “overseas medical trips”, which led to an administrative collapse and the misappropriation of public funds. This has negatively impacted public trust in institutions and reinforced the belief that “connections” are the only way to fulfill one’s needs.

Today, after exiting this dark tunnel to move forward and enable ministers to effectively address their responsibilities, we must consider increasing their number so that each minister can focus on the challenging task of reform. On the other hand, according to the Constitution, increasing the number of ministers requires a simple constitutional amendment. It is also essential to review the existing bodies and councils. Those suitable for serving the country should be assigned a dedicated minister, while others should be abolished. It is unreasonable for these institutions to be managed by ministers, some of whom have a large ministry but whose primary responsibilities lie elsewhere, simply because the constitution imposes restrictive limits.

Decision-makers must consider this issue carefully. Kuwait needs more than 20 or 25 ministers who were selected with great care from specialists who are not tainted by any form of corruption, sectarianism, tribalism, or familial bias. When we highlighted in our previous editorial that the ministerial position is unstable, it was based on factual evidence and poor choices. The “work silently” predicament is a clear example. Over the next four years, as directed by His Highness, ministers must establish themselves in their roles, and their achievements should become evident starting today. The task at hand is to implement previously established plans, amend outdated laws, and get rid of the legacy of parliamentary corruption and self-interest that has long plagued Kuwait.