Which is it: public or private? Kuwaiti or foreign?

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the legitimate parent of the public sector, and the state’s complete control over the means of production, a highly significant study was released by UN economic experts. Its core conclusion was that transferring public sector companies to the private sector does not guarantee success in itself. The crucial factor, according to this important realistic study, is “performance and wise, prudent management.” A public sector company managed efficiently and honestly, and which generates profits, is far superior to private sector companies that steal, plunder, incur losses, and declare bankruptcy. We must remember that the global financial crisis of 2008 was caused by manipulation involving banks, real estate firms, insurance companies, and even credit rating agencies—all privately owned—which led to their collapse and the subsequent failure of many major corporations. This necessitated US government intervention, including the nationalization and ownership of certain companies, a practice historically associated with left-wing and socialist governments. ***

To clarify the picture, within the Kuwaiti context, we have witnessed more than one proof, clearer than the sun at noon, that the issue is not tied to whether an entity is public or private, or whether its management is Kuwaiti or foreign. For example, we saw that the Social Security Affairs Administration under its efficient and trustworthy founder, Hamad Al-Jou’an, and the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, were both more efficient and profitable than some private banks during certain periods. At that time, some corrupt loan departments advanced millions to speculators and gamblers without adequate guarantees, in exchange for receiving a share of the profits. Had the government not intervened at the time to guarantee shareholders’ deposits, some major private banks and companies would have gone bankrupt due to corruption among some of their employees. Veterans recall the names of those banks and those who enriched themselves through those corrupt practices. Later, many Kuwaiti private sector companies went bankrupt, and shareholders’ funds were lost. Among those defrauded in one of our private companies was the friend, prominent Egyptian businessman, and media figure Salah Diab, owner of Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper. He has an interview on YouTube explaining what happened. ***

Final point: 1- To prove all the above, we find that the three major Gulf airlines (Qatar Airways, Emirates, and Etihad) have topped the rankings of the world’s best airlines this year and for many previous decades. These are “government companies” belonging to small states, outperforming tens of thousands of private airlines belonging to major powers. We recall the bankruptcy of major private airlines worldwide, such as Pan Am and TWA, and many European airlines, due to poor management, inflexibility, wrong decisions, and corruption... 2- As an example of good local management, Qatar Airways rose early through support, continuity, and sound management to elevate “Qatar Airways” beyond many foreign-managed private airlines, becoming the primary reference for the global aviation industry. I managed Kuwait Airways for only one year, not the stipulated four years. From the first day, I dismissed thousands who had chosen the “golden check” and remained employed at the institution for five years, thereby negating the purpose of offering that costly check to public funds. We purchased the best fleet in terms of type and number in the history of “Kuwait Airways,” selecting only two models from a single manufacturer: future-oriented aircraft, the Airbus A350 and Airbus A320neo. We reduced the number of aircraft from 38 to 25, rather than increasing them as commission-driven owners do. We avoided the competitor’s aircraft, which had suffered numerous technical problems leading to crashes and grounding. We concluded our case with “Iraqi Airways,” which had remained in court for 23 years, costing public funds hundreds of millions of dollars and bringing $500 million into the public treasury. Previously, “Kuwait Airways” had accepted a settlement of $150 million. We resolved the leasing of five Airbus A300/A330 aircraft, four years old, for 134 million dinars by purchasing the same aircraft for 82 million dinars, to replace them with Airbus A300/A310 aircraft, 25 years old, which posed safety risks and caused huge operational losses. We were threatened with suspension of our operations to Europe due to them. Airbus provided us with those French aircraft from Jet Airways, which “Kuwait Airways” had founded along with a group of businessmen. The UAE’s Etihad Airways had purchased the largest share in it. It is well known that this deal vanished within minutes in favor of Turkish Airlines, following “Kuwait Airways’” announcement of canceling the deal. In the subsequent years, “Kuwait Airways” purchased aircraft from everywhere, and its fleet became closer to a “Macintosh” due to its sheer number of models, causing billions in accumulated losses for “Kuwait Airways,” borne by public funds. A sad story concerns the deal for the Airbus A350, the most successful and best aircraft in the world, which we purchased because it is easy to profit from due to low operating costs, and easy to lease and sell. It was later replaced by Airbus A300/A330 aircraft, which no one else in the world recently bought, and which incur huge operating and leasing costs, with no buyers when the need arises to sell or pledge them... 3- A sad story is what Mr. Badr Khaled Al-Bahr mentioned in his article yesterday in Al-Jarida newspaper, titled “Our Writers and the Crime of Social Security Bribery.” It shows that the excesses of the subsequent Director of Social Security were accompanied by bribes to writers and newspapers, which allowed the publication of falsehoods and lies for the benefit of the corrupt. This is a recurring story involving writers—and even MPs—who consistently stood against the nation and patriots who were keen on public funds and the public interest and the people’s welfare, by attacking the honorable without cause, in favor of influential partners and suspicious hot money coming from abroad...