I may have been too quick to condemn last week. I argued that it was a bit cheeky of the Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri to blame Lebanon’s woeful infrastructure shortcomings on the 1.5 million refugees displaced by Syria’s civil war instead of fessing up to Lebanon’s chronic mismanagement and corruption. Maybe he was on to something.
If so, it’s been a while coming. Twelve years after he burst on to the Lebanese political scene in the wake of his father’s murder to become the face of Sunni anger at the assassination, eight years after he was first elected prime minister and six years after he went into self-imposed exile before returning to be given a second bite at the premiership, we might just be witnessing the coming of age of Saad Hariri.
Last week Nadim Munla, one of his senior advisers, spoke of Mr Hariri’s seven-year plan to raise low-interest loans of between US$10 billion and $12bn over the next seven years from the international community to rehabilitate his country’s infrastructure, in particular electricity, water and roads. And despite what Hizbollah might think about defending its borders from Zionist aggression, getting this done is without doubt Lebanon’s overarching priority. Bottom line, without a major effort to confront a sector defined by incompetence, negligence and theft, the country will not be able to attract any meaningful investment.
It all started with Mr Hariri’s call for financial help at the recent “Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region” in Brussels, which I thought was merely a good opportunity to whip out the begging bowl. But it now appears to have been part of a programme drafted by the Council of Development and Reconstruction, which will be submitted to the good offices of the international community to obtain long-term loans.
This new “Hariri Doctrine” may have been inspired by the creation at the end of last year of the World Bank’s Global Concessional Financing Facility, formed to provide long-term finance and grants for Lebanon and Jordan, the two countries most affected by the refugee crisis.
Has Mr Hariri spotted an opening to launch his own reconstruction process just like his billionaire father, a “civilian” among the civil conflict warlords who rode into town in 1992 and used his swagger and international clout to back the rebuilding of Lebanon, and in particular the centre of Beirut? Known as Horizon 2000, the initiative had many flaws and detractors. Without doubt, the public debt that hangs around Lebanon like a millstone can be traced back to the massive spending the programme incurred (Hariri Senior had banked on the money being recouped by the arrival of millions of Arab tourists who would use Lebanon as their neighbourhood playground), while Solidere, the company created and owned by Hariri and other investors to oversee the reconstruction process, has since become a byword for disappointment.
Even though Hariri Senior’s motives were honourable and he was relatively honest, the era was seen through Lebanon’s toxic, sectarian lens as a power grab by the Sunni community.
So what hope for “Sheikh Saad”, who by popular consent lacks his dad’s charisma and obsession with hard work and results? He has a reputation as a bit of a “fils-a-papa”, the playboy who abandoned Lebanon for Saudi Arabia when the going got tough and yet was seen as the best candidate to succeed Taman Salam, the previous incumbent.
But I would wager that all this would be water under the proverbial bridge if Mr Hariri did indeed raise the money to finally fix Lebanon’s power and water issues, a feat that would arguably eclipse his father’s achievement given the across the board, feel-good factor 24-hour electricity and plentiful water would achieve.
Mr Hariri must know that left to their own devices the Lebanese don’t have the discipline to sort out a problem the roots of which have embedded themselves into the pockets of the political class and the only solution must be financed and overseen by the international community.
All the Lebanese want is water, power and slightly better broadband. As many have told me: “Let the government give us these and we can do the rest.”
Michael Karam is a freelance writer who lives between Beirut and Brighton
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Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
The specs: 2019 GMC Yukon Denali
Price, base: Dh306,500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 621Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.9L / 100km
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
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MATCH INFO
Manchester City 2 (Mahrez 04', Ake 84')
Leicester City 5 (Vardy 37' pen, 54', 58' pen, Maddison 77', Tielemans 88' pen)
Man of the match: Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
LOVE%20AGAIN
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The Matrix Resurrections
Director: Lana Wachowski
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jessica Henwick
Rating:****
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WORLD RECORD FEES FOR GOALKEEPERS
1) Kepa Arrizabalaga, Athletic Bilbao to Chelsea (£72m)
2) Alisson, Roma to Liverpool (£67m)
3) Ederson, Benfica to Manchester City (£35m)
4) Gianluigi Buffon, Parma to Juventus (£33m)
5) Angelo Peruzzi, Inter Milan to Lazio (£15.7m