Can we get out of our rut?Let us try sound governance [Archives:2005/846/Opinion]

Notwithstanding all the problems Yemen is confronted with at this important stage of its development, this observer still believes very strongly that Yemen can still reach for the ultimate. Many people will say this is unthinkable with all the challenges facing the country internally and internationally and there are quite a few times when this observer was inclined to feel the same way. This is understandable as clock ticks away, while little progress is made on any of the fronts that will set us on a proper course and launch the promising sectors in our economy towards dynamic growth and sustained development. This observer also believes that even the not so promising sectors in government do offer opportunities for reforms that could make government operate more efficiently and remove the stubborn corruption that has curtailed any drive towards improving efficiency and performance across the board.

The reason there is still optimism, even with the dismal picture that the current political and economic environ seems to reflect, is because there are mechanisms and institutions that can help bring about a healthy change in attitude towards government and public service. All these mechanisms need to be is more functional and conducive to the responsibilities they shoulder.

While the government must provide the major impetus that could bring about this reversal, one cannot expect that the government alone can wield the dynamism needed to harness all our energies and mobilize all the available resources towards the achievement of realistic goals and objectives. In this regard, people and institutions outside government should set out their own goals and objectives and begin to determine the most appropriate means to arrive to these goals, given the current situation. Many people will say that government stimulus is necessary for any positive move to be meaningful outside government. This is true to a considerable extent. In this context then, it is appropriate to point out that government must recognize that government can simply not carry on the way it has been doing over the last fifteen years of the unification experience. For government to get out of its present rut and stagnancy, there are basically two suggestions that can be very helpful: Government must recognize that it is not in the healthy condition that it hopes to have people believe it is in. There are major drawbacks to sound governance, largely due to the absence of accountability and transparency in most of government activity. Furthermore, government institutions that are responsible for insuring the proper conduct of government and the institution of law and order are simply not doing their job, or doing it very poorly. Parliament and the Courts are simply not performing up to par. Perhaps executive authority still has excessive influence in blocking the effectiveness of these two important institutions of government and the balance of power of the different government institutions is just not operative. But, to blame this on excessive interference by the executive branch is not enough of an excuse when the elements that are in the legislative and judicial branches of government make little effort to exercise their constitutional functions and uphold their powers. The observer is not failing to recognize the possible drawbacks that stand in the way of making this assertion of power wholly effective. However, one is not ready to forgive legislators who are more inclined to work out the political arithmetic of their stands rather than the contributions they could be making to sound governance if they only insisted on asserting their constitutional rights and carry out their functional duties with a greater sense of responsibility and conscientiousness. They should not forget that they are elected by the people and therefore, their constituencies deserve from them some degree of adherence to principles of sound government that they must uphold, if they are to show their gratitude for the votes they obtained. This would guarantee their reelection better than any political arrangements or conformation of their stands with that of the executive authority. As it stands now the general population is disappointed in the tepidness of the oversight functions of Parliament and many are ready to suggest that Parliament is serving no more than a decorative function to impress “the international community”. Back home, the overwhelming majority are not at all impressed. The courts have even been worse at trying to assert their authority and have been far weaker in exercising their proper role as interpreters and enforcers of the Constitution and the Laws. This represents a real major drawback to the implementation of sound governance. This results in poor confidence, not only among the people of Yemen but also among prospective investors from the many wealthy Yemenis who are abroad and international investors. Unless the law is applied equitably and fairly on all citizens, there can never be any hope for convincing anyone inside Yemen and outside that Yemen is truly a state of Law and Order.

No one is suggesting that this will not require brave stands to be taken by the elements that make up our legislative and judicial branches of government, and even sacrifices. But there is really no other way to ensure that each authority is functioning as it should and there is no other way that the overall interest of the Yemeni people will be served effectively. It is not easy, but then again, it is also clear that the present situation is also not easy to live with anymore.

On the non-governmental side; i.e., civil society and the private sector, there needs to be some assertion of public responsibility. Efforts must be made by people to organize into interest groups that can wield strong influence on government if these organizations are themselves run in the proper ways of sound governance. This entails transparency, greater participation by members in decision making and accountability of officials in these organizations (including political organizations). Civil society must also work towards spreading awareness among the public as to the peaceful ways by which they can influence government decisions. The private sector needs to get out of its monopolistic mentality and realize that there is enough for everyone to have. They should not encourage government officials to be corrupt, but do all they can to take a united stand against corruption. Sound governance is in their interest also in the long run.
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