Donors conference, inevitability of partnership [Archives:2006/998/Opinion]
Prof. Abdulaziz Al-Tarb
Our stand is sometimes not easily understood and our stands are bewildering and this includes both the governing system and opposition. The government behaves as if the matter concerns it alone and as if the task of qualification is entrusted with it and its institutions of authority while civil society organizations outside authority have nothing to do with the entire process.
The opposition on the other side behaves as if the issue concerns only the ruling party and any political, social or economic success by the country to perform its regional and international role is, in the end, the success of the government rather than success for the country for which all have to contribute for national success.
Our political relations and competition must not blind us or impede our role in supporting our country in the process of qualification and obtaining donors and technical support. The experiments we experienced in previous international conferences emphasize the necessity of putting aside political differences. We have always called for joining forces and efforts of all of us for the support of the country's higher interests.
It is really the problem of mixing between the higher interest of the homeland and the political groups. The ruling political force of today can become the opposition tomorrow. However all of us are proceeding from the wrong square; believing to be the legitimate representative of the higher interest of the country. What one side sees, says and proposes is representing the higher interest of the homeland, but what the other does is quite opposite to national interest. Nonetheless, all claim to be democratic and respectful of both opinions.
The time has come for us to start make our political thinking and visions in accordance with the same rights we see for ourselves.
There must be reconsideration in handling public issues and the governance because then its institutions would realize their interest and the country's interest lies in informing the opposition parties and the civil society on what is going on and engage them in some phases of dealing with public issues must not be confined to government institutions. We fin that countries with the most success involved many parties of political, economic, cultural, social and intellectual systems.
As we are preparing for the donor conference this month and another the beginning of next year, President Ali Abdullah Saleh is concerned with accomplishing comprehensive reforms and tackling failures that accompanied the process of building the unity state since its inception up until now. This goal was mentioned in the president's speeches in his election rallies.
We have supported and welcomed the president's assurances after his election victory and his emphasis on electing governors and heads of districts and restricting the period for leading posts to four years. All this means introduction of efficient and capable people to executive establishments, particularly that the country possesses national talents that have not been used since declaration of the Yemeni unity in 1990.
We request the donor states and institutions to offer material, technical and knowledge support to help realize overall reform, to tackle failures and qualify our country to enable it to perform its important role regionally and internationally. Yemen needs to contribute to the pillars of security and stability in the region and the world and achieve economic, social, political and cultural development to deliver our people from the deteriorate level they have reached. It is also to help the people to keep pace with development renascence experienced by many countries in the world and our region in particular.
The Gulf Cooperation Council countries shoulders the task and the biggest role in qualification and should double their efforts during and after the conference of London so Yemen can be capable of integration and partnership with its sisterly states of the GCC. The GCC countries are capable of playing this role and have potential to achieve that partnership so Yemen can be the strategic depth for the region's stability.
Prof. Abdulaziz Al-Tarb is an economist and a professor in Political Science. He is the head of the Arab Group for Investment and Development
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