publish time

18/08/2022

publish time

18/08/2022

WHEN Hammurabi, the sixth king of Babylon, enacted his 282 laws, his intention was to establish a developed society in comparison to what the world was like at that time.

His vision can be considered as the basis of the guidelines adopted by great leaders throughout history who established capable and strong states. Some of them still adopt such guidelines to this day.

In ancient Babylon, Hammurabi was considered as a model of how to combine military strength, diplomatic prowess and political skill at the same time, making the small city of Babylon a great empire that expanded to cover most of the ancient East.

In the world today, there are countries where leaders were able to bring about radical changes in society, and moved them from being underdeveloped to achieving progress and prosperity because they worked to uphold the law and combat all forms of corruption.

They started with those on top so that there would be no favoritism, or the balance of reform will not be disturbed. That is the legacy they left for the coming generations.

In Kuwait, due to negligence in the application of the law and the exploitation of democracy for only freedom of opinion and expression and not as a social behavior, that value turned into a freedom of obscenity and provocation of tribalism and sectarianism, and led to what looks like a vertical division in society.

This reflected on all institutions, as it was under the cover of sectarian and confessional, or tribal and family solitude.

The systematic looting of public money, and winning of projects was overlooked. The positions of executive officials became a source of financial and electoral gain.

Unfortunately, all those who took over the two authorities - the executive and the legislative - did not realize that this disease - corruption - will eliminate them first, and that the strength of Kuwait is in its immunity from these pests.

All of this would not have happened if there were strong governing institutions that made a firm decision.

Therefore, the Kuwaitis rejoiced over the good news about the recent measures taken by the state. According to the information leaked from the meetings of the leaders, a firm decision was taken to combat everything that was left by the past stage and the corruption that thrived in the institutions.

The indication of the aforementioned sense of decisiveness has begun to appear, either in the dismissals from executive positions, or the fleeing of those polluted with corruption or those smeared with suspicions.

They fled because they realized that the state of loose money, which taught them to loot, has ended, and the era of appeasement, which enabled them to appear as untouchables,  has elapsed.

This matter has begun to constitute a source of reassurance for Kuwaitis who have suffered greatly as a result of past practices.

Today, everyone feels that they are living in a state of law with a leadership that never compromises in holding any negligent accountable.

However, the doses of reassurance that restore confidence must persist along with firmness. The rolling of the wheel of development, which has been hampered for a long time or exploited for personal and sectarian gains, must be launched.

When reverence is lost, the country falls. Sustainable development is a source of strength and stability for society.

By Ahmed Al-Jarallah

Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times