Thank you Your Highness the Prime Minister, but…

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BRAVO to His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Nawaf for his speech to the parliamentarians. It is the first time in decades that the National Assembly witnessed such a confrontation. While his words were enveloped in courtesy, it included a soft threat, but he could have spoken directly to the people, and presented the whole picture. Yes, the parliamentarians address the populist matters, something that is usually the role of representatives of the people in the parliaments of the world.

On the other hand, isn’t it the task of the Council of Ministers, in its capacity as an executive authority, to be aware of what the people need, or for the leadership to be in constant contact with the people? It is true that, from what the MPs propose, there are some that the government can accept, and some that cannot be implemented. However, it is also true that the Kuwaiti people have never asked for the impossible.

In fact, they always ask for what is possible, but when that becomes impossible in the eyes of successive governments, this means that they are in a different world. Today, the housing issue is still an urgent matter that costs the public funds hundreds of millions annually. We have heard and read a lot of plans and slogans, and have seen the dismissal of ministers and those responsible for housing care, but nothing has changed. This is happening despite the presence of close models in Saudi Arabia, the Emirates and other Arab countries that have solved this problem within a few years while ours continues to worsen due to the lack of seriousness of the decision.

Also, when the Minister of Finance talks about loans amounting to more than KD 14 billion, he is contradicting previous ministers on one hand, and mixing loans and debts that have nothing to do with simple personal loans that do not exceed KD 1.9 billion on the other hand. It appears from his words and the messages sent by the government from time to time that this matter is a commodity for bargaining in the bazaar of mutual parliamentary-governmental pressure. It also indicates the failure to listen to people’s opinions, unless the government seeks to make the debts of the Al-Manakh stock market crash as part of this solution.

The people did not ask for the waiver of all loans – neither commercial nor “Al-Manakh” or the debts of other countries – but they are asking for leniency. His Highness the Prime Minister was clear when indicating that the government will not submit to the National Assembly, which means maintaining a contentious “nail” between it and the people. That is why we say – There are other arrangements that can be resorted to, which are rescheduling over long periods, canceling interest, stopping the travel ban (something that is only present in Kuwait and not in other parts of the world), and making room for people to obtain its services.

During the crisis of Al-Manakh stock market, the judiciary was very understanding, when it asked the debtor to pay KD 100 in order to allow him to travel for treatment or any other matter, and then return to the country. At that time, we did not hear about any Kuwaiti who fled because of a debt. Thank you, His Highness the Prime Minister, for your elegant words, but what counts is implementation, work and achievement, which is what Kuwaitis expect from their leadership.

By Ahmed Al-Jarallah
Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times
Email: [email protected]
[email protected]

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