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Algeria needs serious changes after a summer of ‘conspiracy’ problems

August 26, 2020 at 3:10 pm

Thousands of Algerians take part in an anti-government demonstration in Algiers, Algeria on 5 November 2019 [Farouk Batiche/Anadolu Agency]

The people of Algeria have witnessed a number of problems over the summer, most of which President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has described as conspiracies. Many aspects of political and social life are affected, and we need to take an in-depth look to determine which can be put down to conspiracies and which are due to the effects of decades of bad politics and the handing of responsibilities to those who are incompetent. Corruption mars all public policy and is probably the real reason for all of these problems.

The economic crisis caused by the sharp decline in oil prices naturally has an impact on the provision of basic necessities for most Algerians. There is no serious strategy in place which can overcome this as well as the country’s high unemployment rate and a structural deficit in the trade balance. Decades of public spending on unproductive projects tainted with corruption have left their mark. Add to this the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Algerian economy looks perilous.

Management issues have led to Algerians crowding in front of banks and post offices to receive their salaries or pensions with little regard for social distancing to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus. They have also suffered power cuts in major cities, cuts in water supply and forest fires. President Tebboune and Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerad have said publicly that it is a strange coincidence that all of these problems have arisen in this way.

We need to read between the lines when the politicians speak like this. The regional context is important, not least the difficult situation in Algeria and neighbouring Libya.

READ: Algeria appoints new anti-corruption Gendarmerie commander 

Tebboune has hinted strongly in two recent speeches that there are remnants of the former regime trying to derail reforms in Algeria. If change is to be effective and progress is to be made, then such people need to be removed from their positions and held to account for their mismanagement. The people of Algeria are entitled to expect honest and efficient services from government employees. Moreover, public policy should be based on analysing problems to find the root causes and then coming up with solutions that do not impede the regular functioning of public institutions, especially those which are related to the economy.

Officials should be appointed on the basis of their competence and efficiency, with due diligence and controls to ensure an end to corruption. If done properly, this should guarantee that the people of Algeria are provided with effective governance and public services.

Despite the efforts of the president and prime minister, the remnants of the Bouteflika regime have apparently been able to smuggle millions of dollars overseas. Such looted funds have been used to try to whitewash their image. The former president of the Algerian Business Leaders Forum, Ali Haddad, for example, is in prison but was still was able to pay huge sums of money to an American PR firm to improve his image in the hope, perhaps, of influencing the authorities in Algeria to reduce his sentence or revoke the decision to seize his assets.

The main conspiracy, I would suggest, is to continue with the same sort of approach to undermine the efficiency of state functions which have an impact on the daily affairs of Algerian citizens. Some media outlets seem to have deliberately covered up problems even more serious than those which have affect Algeria this summer. This habit of not scrutinising and challenging incompetent or corrupt officials is what has placed Algeria into this position.

In politics, conspiracy is synonymous with mismanagement, inappropriate appointments and the absence of strict scrutiny and oversight. In the absence of the latter, the problems will remain. Problems are to be expected in any sphere of life, and in any country, of course. It is unreasonable, however, to allow the same mistakes to be made over and over again due to identifiable reasons such as corruption and inefficiency. Algeria needs an immediate change to this sort of approach and the removal of those who are continuing to push failed public policies.

READ: Algeria says to investigate actions targeting stability

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.