Political dust blinds sight and insight

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SINCE the beginning of the current legislative term, and even during the extra time of the previous legislative term before the elections, not a glimmer of hope emerged to indicate any real effort to put the country on the path of development and progress. Instead, all that has been happening is the further plunging into the delusion of a conflict that will keep on dragging us into the abyss if it continues without a decisive confrontation.

It is clear that the current Cabinet, and the one before it, has been comfortable with this vacuum since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, as it relieves the burden of responsibility and accountability, and wards off the evil of interpellation.

Nonetheless, the question that preoccupies the minds of most Kuwaitis is – “Are things okay?”

Is it possible for a country to rise when its institutions are idle, and its government, the formation of which was difficult, is not able to work because it has not won the confidence of the Parliament yet?

Also, the Parliament does not seem to be ready to exercise its role before concluding the battle of “general pardon” and the law related to offenses against the high leadership of the country. In the past two days, this has been trending in reaction to the ruling of the Constitutional Court, which went against the whims of the MPs. Some would be avenging what they claim to be violations committed in the elections of the parliamentary speakership.

To this day, we have not heard anything reassuring or anything that would indicate the intention to ensure the country gets out of the dark tunnel, especially in terms of the economy and finance. Rather, this anomaly has caused major crises for several countries. The intensification of the controversy over matters that are not of major importance compared to the paralysis the country suffers from is indicative of the government and parliamentary bankruptcy, and the absence of a vision due to the political “dust” that blinds insights and sights.

Undoubtedly, we will come out with those who say democratic societies are going through this kind of crisis. After six decades of democracy, something that we did not know how to implement, we have reached the bottom line both socially and economically. All that we saw have been conflicts over personal interests.

What did democracy offer us?

It increased social isolation by preventing co-education even though students of both genders mingle in corridors and playgrounds. It continued to restrict various means of entertainment and tourism. Culture has been restricted to the perspective of certain political forces including the perspective of an MP who warned about the visit of “Jalal Al-Din Al-Rumi” to Kuwait even though he died hundreds of years ago, but the same MP ended up becoming the Minister of Information and the supervisor of cultural institutions.

All of these have played with Kuwaiti society to such an extent that it is unable to fulfill the mission for which the Constitution was drawn up, even though our Constitution is still considered very advanced, provided it is strictly applied.

The gloomy scene in today’s Kuwait is in dire need of a decisive and firm approach from the top leadership. It should either be through a government that governs and administers the country, or the matter should be  left to the National Assembly to act according to the whims of its MPs so that all is lost and we are then at the mercy of those who are ready to destroy the country for the sake of a handful of voices that give them their seats while the Kuwaitis are thrown into the hell of crises.

By Ahmed Al-Jarallah

Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times

This news has been read 19564 times!