Yemenis observe unity anniversary [Archives:2004/740/Opinion]

By Abdulwahab A. Al-Sofi
[email protected]
For Yemen Times
On 22nd May every year all Yemenis celebrate on the occasion of Yemen unity. It is the historical achievement which is impossible to ignore or forget.
This event creates new developments in Yemen for all Yemenis. This accomplishment was done by His Excellency, Mr. President, Ali Abdullah Saleh. He devoted all his efforts to fulfill this unity as all Yemeni people were waiting for it on tender hooks. It came to comply with necessary will of the Yemeni people. It is an honor for our President that two independent Yemens were merged into one Yemen during his rule. What our previous leaders have not been able to achieve since the 1960s, Mr. President fulfilled in 1989. What was dream yesterday became true today. Consequently, Yemeni people enjoy all their nights and practice them in reality. Thus, we can say with full mouth that the Yemen Republic has formed a strong seed for Arab unity, which is a necessity at present.
We could solve all our problems with our neighbors concerning borderlands and various fields. Yemen is about to be a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council. This is because of flexible policy of Mr. President. He prevented the conspiracy of others. History will not only bear witness to this leader, but also the next generation will immortalize him when they read the history of Yemen. He is entirely a hero so that history will be written for him by water of gold.
This remarkable achievement results from tremendous progress in all fields. Yemen became a quite modern and prosperous state, and many roads were paved everywhere. Hospitals, universities and schools were built. I myself touched this progress as I lived before and after unity.
On the other hand, we have seen what we had not come across before. As far as we enjoy some rights such as freedom, learning, telecommunications we suffer from the difficulty of earning a livelihood. Salaries don't suffice persons to live fortnight. Some people cannot afford their daily food. The poverty increases gradually. Administrative deterioration spreads widely repeatedly in many fields of the government. The electricity doesn't work instantly. In hot areas people are still suffering from disconnecting the electrical current. It disconnects 2 hours every day and night. Does it take ten years enough for electricity to be repaired? It is incredible in such a stabled country that electricity has not yet been improved since 1994. Despite that the electricity bill charge was doubled. Although our country exports many products including oil, we cannot catch up with neighboring countries. We are still learning. We start when others finish as if we were riding donkeys not horses. Yemen is developing rapidly only on T.V screens and official newspapers whereas it develops slowly in reality. Otherwise, how can we interpret the loss of the Yemeni people's income level, which is a main standard for country's prosperity? We want a clear answer.
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