The Sultanate is currently on a reform mode, and significantly, the reforms here are in sync with the changes taking place in the Arab world and beyond, spearheaded as they are by popular movements.
The recent decisions and directives of Sultan Qaboos bin Said are clear evidence that the Omani citizens are receiving prompt and positive response to their demands in a way that benefits the whole society.
Among the several royal decrees that Sultan has issued in the last few days was one that reshuffled the Council of Ministers forming a new Cabinet under his chairmanship, with Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said as the deputy prime minister and 28 others as ministers, most of them from the Majlis Al Shoura, who are highly qualified and capable. While ten new ministers were inducted in the Council of Ministers, 12 ministers were shown the door. Furthermore, Royal Decree No. 38/2011 abolished the National Economy Ministry and put the Council of Ministers in charge of the task of setting up a committee to manage the distribution of responsibilities, prerogatives, assets and employees.
In fact, the prompt and positive response of Sultan to the demands for reform illustrates that his wise policy stems from his profound concern and care for the citizens. It may be noted that there is a lot of difference between the demands of the Omani citizens and those of their counterparts in other Arab countries. Here, the citizens are voicing their demands in a democratic and peaceful way, expressing allegiance and loyalty to Sultan.
Undoubtedly, the "disappearance" of the Ministry of National Economy is of great significance as it had a slew of important responsibilities. They included preparation, implementation and supervision of the Five-Year Development Plans; preparation of economic and social statistics, surveys and censuses; enhancement of economic relations between the Sultanate and the world nations; supervising the internal economic and human resources policies; bolstering the relations between the public and private sectors; supervision of the privatization policy and matters concerning the Capital Market Authority, the CBO and related institutions and departments.
It is worth mentioning in this context that the government has put in tremendous efforts to diversify the sources of income in a bid to lessen the country's dependence on the oil and gas sector.
Of late, a number of experts have emphasized the need for a strong economy. In a recent statement to Al Shabiba, the sister publication of Times of Oman, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Hamed Al Harthy, deputy chairman of the joint committee for Omanization in private sector education has warned that we will have to face a multitude of major challenges as our country has a long way to go to become a productive and competent economy.
So it is our bounden duty to work in unison to make the country's economy robust and vibrant. All we need for this is a right start as we are all blessed with enormous abilities, not least intellectual capabilities. There are a number of countries that have taken right steps and succeeded in making their economies efficient and resilient. A shining example is Malaysia, which has moved from a category of poor and unproductive countries to become one of the strong economies of the world, thanks to the determination and dedication of its people. Sultan must surely have had these things in his mind while abolishing the Ministry of National Economy.
It is imperative that the economic analysts and pundits in the Sultanate make the youths understand the importance of industries and a productive economy. We surely appreciate and welcome the statements of economic experts. But what is more important is translating these statements into reality. The portfolio of the Ministry of Economy is perhaps the backbone of any country, and in many cases, it represents the "address" of the domestic as well as foreign investors. As an economic expert has opined, we must shift our focus to finding ways to make our economy strong and vibrant. This is of paramount importance because only a robust and competent economy would be resilient enough to ride out troubled times.
Protesters or not, all the people across the society appreciate Sultan's wise policy in running the affairs of the state in a highly satisfactory manner. The legitimate demands of the people are being accepted and grievances redressed as per the available means and in accordance with the development plans. Oman is on the right track thanks to the continued guidance of the government by Sultan with periodical decrees and directives.
We thank all the officials who listen to the citizens, review their demands and claims and provide solutions promptly and in a transparent manner. We also thank them for their willingness to understand the requirements and the need for changes in this critical phase in the history of the world.
Several demands of the citizens have been granted in the last few days. The Royal Grants are testament to Sultan's remarkable affinity with his people and his ability to read the pulse of the nation.
We all agree that the demands of the protesters have been handled in a civilized way by the authorities concerned and we hail the media for its role in bringing these developments to every household. No one has reservations about their demands.
The citizens ask for reforms and the government hammers out solutions in double quick time and with total transparency. Most laudably, the officials concerned are meeting the protesters at their workplaces. We also appreciate the positive role played by the ROP personnel who are indeed a role model for their counterparts in other countries.
© Arab News 2011
