The Sudanese State Reform Plan: Is It Theoretical or Practical?
18 April, 2016KHARTOUM (SUDANOW)--After The Government has declared its intention of reforming the Sudanese state about two years ago, observers believe that the reform plans, which are still in the stage of committees and reports, cannot offer a substantial solution to the ongoing crisis, particularly as the plan is in parallel with other political issues such as the national dialogue which is of a considerable concern of the government.
Other observers believe that the reform is continuous operations of no specific timetable but should be a reform on the ground rather than submitted reports and the matter ends with writing those reports. The latter observers opine that there must be a reform action felt by the ordinary citizen with regard to his life, security and means of living and that there must be a genuine intention of bringing about a real change.
The Reform Plan:-
The reform process, which was presented by the government under the supervision of First Vice President Lt. Gen. Bakri Hassan Salih, provides for reformation of the political life, the judicial, organizational and security structures and the relationship of the ruling party with the other parties.
The reform revolves around seven pivots which are:
First: The economic reform of all financial, monetary, productive, services and external economic relations sectors by strengthening their structures and institutions, taking into account their contribution to upgrading the life of the citizen.
Second: The Social reform which is achieved by strengthening the weak segments and those which are affected by the economic reform and protecting those segments by various means, including a direct and indirect support, stabling financing mechanisms for small producing families and individuals, taking care of and financing the projects of the students and rural women, upgrading the saving bank and all other social funding bodies.
Third: Reform of the civil service and development of the human resources by activating the principle of justice and equality and revision of legislations and mechanisms of the civil serve at the national and state levels.
Fourth: Reform of the foreign relations by coping with the national, regional and international developments and linking them with the country's interests.
Fifth: The inclusive legislative, legal and justice reform.
Sixth: The information reform which covers all of the information tools and systems.
Seventh: Reform of the security and defense systems and rehabilitation and strengthening the structures of military, security and police institutions.
The Five-year Plan:
The comprehensive reform plan which is decided to be implemented in five years has been placed under First Vice President Bakri Hassan Salih to show the seriousness of the plan to achieve its goal and, furthermore, six main committees have been formed to follow up the reform process.
For his part, General Salih revealed in a press conference last August an inclusive plan for reforming the state in a specific timetable and by certain instruments to be followed up by a presidential high committee. The reform project is based on an unconventional program carried out through strict follow-up means, he said, adding that a number of decisions require legislations and laws to be enacted by next June, 2016, at latest.
Salih pointed out that the state reform program is aimed at rebuilding a state based on shourah (consultation) and democracy and capable of providing services to all people. If the reform program is implemented properly and on schedule, the reform will be inclusive and will determine the manner in which the power is revolved and will be satisfactory to all people, he added.
He said there are decisions which will be implemented forthwith and there are other decisions which need reconsideration. There have been issued 33 decisions, including 280 items aimed at restoring the civil service to its former status, including restoration of the jurisdictions of the Under-Secretary in his capacity as the dynamical element in the reform process, reactivation of the principles of transparency, and fairness in the promotions, incentives and accountability, Salih said. He indicated the need for establishing a computerized civil service commission that would guarantee transparency and fairness in the state appointments free of affiliation and affinity, the First Vice President said, adding: "The age of empowerment has gone forever."
General Salih has heralded a new era of a specific period of five years with instruments for implementation, accountability and supervision of the Presidency for bringing the recent President Beshir's speech known as 'wathabah' (leap) on the ground. He said their plans are not for anesthetization of the people with mellifluous speech and sugary promises. "The government has accelerated the pace for a genuine reform after a pause for self-assessment to spare the country the disasters of the Arab Spring," said the first Vice President.
He said his government is determined not to retract from the electronic collection and returning to the obsolete form 15, noting an increase in the revenue despite problems which he said still face the electronic collection.
Suspicions:
Despite the above-mentioned statements, observers doubt the likelihood of the success of the reform plan, citing a number of considerations, including the possibility that the plan may miss the state which the country has reached and that the missing peace may thwart any efforts for reform as the targeted development can be achieved only under peace and security while the organs of the state which are responsible for implementing the reform are lacking sincerity.
Dr. Abdul Latif Mohamed Saeed, political science lecturer, told SUDANOW that he does not believe that the reform plan would reach any results or would achieve any objective as most of the plan which come down from higher authorities are not implemented properly. He regarded the matter as nothing but a narcotic that anesthetizes the people, contrary to what the First Vice President has mentioned. One of the reasons for the failure of the plan are the numerous committees which have been formed to follow up its implementation, said Dr. Saeed, noting that the numerous committees "kill" any issue.
Contrary to Dr. Saeed's opinion, economist and associate lecturer of the expatriates university Dr. Mohamed al-Nayr believes that the reform plan has been prepared in a proper way and consists of several pivots, including the economic one. He adds that the implementation is going on satisfactorily and is followed up continuously while all responsible units submit periodic reports to the Council of Ministers beside surprise visits to make sure that the plan's objectives of upgrading the production, increasing the wages and improving the living standards are being observed for solving many of the problems facing the people.
The Timing:
A period of five years has been set for finishing implementation of the reform plan while legislations and laws are set to be formulated by next June but Dr. Saeed is of the viewpoint that a period of eight months of the duration of the plan is sufficient for some committees to submit their performance reports, regarding a protracted time is not in favor of the success of the plan.
Major General Al-Abbas Mohamed al-Amin maintains that the timing set for the plan is appropriate and it is still premature to judge on the success or failure of the plan, noting that the reform plans worldwide usually take a long time, extending to 10 years. A long period of time is need for the state to regain its strength as, he went on, the reform issue is not an administrative one but is made up of practices within the political party. The reform must observe the Sudan's status which is in the stage of composition, Amin said, adding that the economic reform program must be implemented through practice rather than theories.
The Reform Plan- the comprehensive Solution:
The reform plan coincides with a number of political problems aimed at achieving stability in the country. The national dialogue, the Addis Ababa peace negotiations and the Darfur administrative referendum are considered by observers as complementary to each other and if they succeed the stability will be reached in the country. Yet there are others who consider those political as having an adverse impact on the reform plan. Dr. saeed believes that the several political operations may weaken the process of the plan due to the scattered efforts of the government and the implementation of reform plan requires a constant close follow-up.
Economist Mohamed al-Nayr says the reform plan is not the sole comprehensive solution but is part of the solution if the outcome of the dialogue is added to it and the success of the economic reform and the other policies will provide a way out of the country's crisis.
The Theorization and the Practice:
Many observers criticize the government for not being able to move all of the plans it proposes from the theorization stage to practical one and they attribute the failure of all the previous plans to the failure of subjecting them to a genuine practice that brings about substantial results and the general reform plan is not an exception.
The strategic expert, Major General Al-abbas Mohamed al-Amin, told SUDANOW that that the reform issues are not administrative structures and reports which are written and submitted but are actual practices. Those issues must be arranged in accordance with the status of the Sudan and understanding its problems, the nature of its formations and its population, said Amin. He added, however, that the importance of the reform plan is that it provides actions for future practicing and contains innovative initiatives, not only writing reports and, for this reason, it may succeed and reach its goals provided that it is subjected to proper practicing.
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MAS/AS