Turning Tail

Al-Wefaq’s abrogation of pre-elections promises is complete. They can no longer be called “opposition”, they are just another flavour of a docile quasi-political society, just like the others. The only real opposition which insures the government is watched in its performance then are those powers outside the parliamentary game.

What a shame. Such promise and in under 100 days they are domesticated.

أكد نواب كتلة الوفاق المشاركون في المؤتمر الدستوري أن عمل الجمعية بات مؤطراً بأدوات عمل جديدة، ودعوا إلى الواقعية في طرح الملفات.

وقال عضو كتلة الوفاق السيدحيدر الستري: «نحن بحاجة إلى التقويم والتصحيح، ولكن أحداً لم يصرح بأن الوفاق تخلت عن المسألة الدستورية، ولكن الجميع يعاني من عدم امتلاك مشروع واقعي، وقد توجد بعض الرؤى لكنها اصطدمت بالواقع، والجمعية ستخوض صراعاً، لكنه صراع سياسي ديمقراطي، سنخوض صراعاً تفاوضياً وحواراً جدياً».

The right honourable Wefaq MP Al-Sitri is “explaining” that the game has new rules now, and now they have to play by them.

It is as if they didn’t know this before they decided to join the fray and practically exclude their ally Wa’ad. Now their MPs are making one excuse after another that “it’s not their fault” and “they’re trying their hardest” and “they did not forget the constitutional question” and other ready and expired excuses.

وقال النائب الشيخ حمزة الديري: «نريد المراقبة والمحاسبة، واكبر إنسان يحتاج إلى نصيحة، (الوفاق) لم تتنازل عن أي ملف وضعته في برنامجها الانتخابي، ولكن المسألة تحتاج إلى شيء من الواقعية، ولكن لسنا الوحيدين في الساحة، فنحن جزء من مجتمع متنوع، والمسألة الدستورية تحتاج إلى توافق».

MP Al-Dairi is asking us to be “practical” in our demands, and reminds us that Wefaq are not alone and the constitutional question requires agreement. Yes, we know that. So why did you boycott for 4 years and went through all that rhetoric again?

He continues:

وحتى اليوم نحن كجمعيات معارضة لم نستطع مجاراة الحكومة في كسب الشارع السني، لكي نثبت لهم أننا ندافع عن حقوقهم

saying that they (Wefaq) are still facing problems convincing the “Sunni street” that Wefaq will fight for their rights too. Well, that would have been easier had they included the candidates from Wa’ad in their plans, rather than effectively offer them as a scapegoats.

من جانبه، قال النائب جواد فيروز: «هناك نية مسبقة لأن نحكم على الوفاق بالفشل، ولا يمكن أن نقيم عمل الكتلة في شهرين، وليس من الإنصاف القول إن أداء نواب الكتلة أسوأ من النواب السابقين، ونحن لدينا رؤية واضحة واستراتيجية بشأن العمل على الملفين الدستوري والمعيشي في مسارٍ موازٍ».

MP Jawad Fairouz further confirms our worst fears in stating that there is a “prior intention to determine that Al-Wefaq will be made to fail” bringing about that famous “conspiracy” red-herring, and claims that it is impossible to judge the performance of the bloc as it has only been working for just two months.

Well, excuse me Mr. Fairouz, you boycotted the inauguration of parliament, you gave away the first-deputy chairmanship, your chairman gave-away his position of heading the legislative committee to an unknown deputy and you didn’t even bother to have a press conference in which to declare your full intentions which could have been done on day one. That does not take 60 days. It’s just common sense to tell people what you intend to do and declare your parliamentary program over the next 4 years in a realistic manner.

You can’t come now, after all the high hopes and the excess of votes you received collectively and tell us to temper our expectations. That just does not wash.

As far as I am concerned, Al-Wefaq so far has been an abject failure surrounded with cloaks, turbans and mysteries. It is not acting as a political society that we expected it to be, it is acting as a confused cabal being slapped around by all and sundry. So don’t come to us now and cry foul. You knew (or should have known) what you were getting into. You played a dirty tactical game to exclude those people who would have not only genuinely helped you in parliament, but also would have added to your credibility in the Sunni stream, yet you chose the turbans.

I think I’ll put the countdown clock to count down the days to see the backs of you. And that would not be soon enough.