A Candidate’s Socialism

It is quite normal to find a candidate for the National Assembly elections who launches fiery statements attacking the government and its institutions. Sometimes he might be right in his attack, and other times he might just be begging voters. The problem with this country is that many of its voters are employees, retirees, and housewives, who are completely dependent on their salaries and have many debts and obligations. This is a sensitive area that many candidates go to. The blame here goes to the former National Assembly representative with the highest educational degree when we find that his main concern was the salaries and bonuses of the leaders of sensitive financial institutions, which manage state funds and retirees. We find him turning people against them, and how we wish he could tell the real figures, but he even multiplies them and forgets that there is a specific salary and bonus structure, which is not more than what leaders in banks and financial institutions receive, but far from the global level in terms of salaries and bonuses for such leaders. The debate was extended by a veteran candidate who excelled in his criticism of salaries. He pointed his arrows at the ministers and what they received as salaries. As far as I understand, he is demanding that no minister be given any bonuses other than his salary, and I think he mentioned that the salary was to be 2,500 Kuwaiti Dinars. Our friend, this socialist millionaire, the owner of many real estates—May Allah increase him—wants the state to be run by ministers who either have no work and are looking for any salary, or ministers who are satisfied with the meagre salary and then get other benefits from under the table. This group of people has reached a low level of electoral gain. I quote this English proverb: "If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys," to my fellow voters, which means if you pay low salaries, "peanuts," as a metaphor, you will find only those who are incompetent. So, do we accept that the state and its institutions are run by incompetent employees? Do we accept making the seniority and the special, unfair choices of national assembly representatives the standard? I don't know if they see this mechanism as the main reason for the deterioration of government performance! For the record, the honest minister and employees consider their time as their only trade, which is sold to the state for a salary. So, why would he accept to be a minister or a government employee with a salary that does not reach a quarter of what he may receive if he works in private institutions or the private sector, if he was of high competency? Those institutions are willing to pay for expertise to the benefit of themselves and their shareholders.  Here, I advise my fellow voters not to be influenced by such desperate people to reach the seat of parliament regardless of the means. Just know that they are attacking devilishly areas through which they aim to stir feelings of envy, jealousy, hatred and division among society, which is not good at all. Some of these candidates’ performances remind me of the play "On Tabrizi’s wing and his fellow Qafh," a very nice play that was acted in 1975 by Ghanem Al-Saleh and Muhammad Al-Mansour. I advise you all to watch it, as it is a good and amusing play that reflects the real status of our society nowadays. I hope the government will not pay any attention to such ideas, but rather create a rewarding cadre and announce clear details that will be paid to ministers and state leaders, if they want their ministers and leaders to be competent as in the private sector.

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