His Majesty King Abdullah’s message to the nation, last
week, on the occasion of his 60th birthday, was inspirational, focusing on
reforms as the outcome of a cross-government national vision and the need to
believe that we can get things done.
اضافة اعلان
Equally important is the focus on the psychology of reform,
which His Majesty insisted cannot materialize if a spirit of pessimism remains
lurking in the collective psyche.
The Royal message is that we should have faith, hope,
energy, focus and determination to move forward to the future we all hope for.
As the country celebrates the leader’s birthday and takes
its first steps into its second centenary, the Royal letter was not bereft of a
strong message to pessimists to step aside and open the way for the hopeful
majority to keep marching on the road, because the journey is not easy and only
enthusiasm and energy, generated by hope and belief in ourselves and our
ability as Jordanians to realize our aspirations, can carry us to the finish
line.
To begin with, there is no denial that the reality we are
experiencing now is way below ambition, but we cannot just recognize that and
sit idle, hoping for nothing and working for no change to the status quo. In
fact, the last thing Jordanians want to hear now is discouraging, frustrating
and pessimistic assertions that there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
The message to those voicing them is loud and clear in the
letter: “Pessimism does not build futures. Despair does not offer solutions.
And we will not move a step forward unless our ambition is relentless. I know
Jordanians have unmatched willpower, and they do not settle for anything but
the best. Together, we will build our best future.”
The timing of such inspiring statement is just right,
because the train of reform has left the station, and 2022 is aptly described
as the year of comprehensive reform.
The last act in the preparations for the transformation was,
as underlined by the King, a directive to the Royal Court to “start organizing
a national workshop that brings together economic experts, in cooperation with
the government, to devise a comprehensive vision and a roadmap for the coming
years that guarantees unleashing Jordan’s potential to achieve sustainable,
comprehensive growth that doubles job opportunities, expands the middle class,
and improves living conditions to ensure a better quality of life for
citizens”.
The move comes as lawmakers have endorsed constitutional
changes proposed by a representative group of experts, politicians and
intellectuals from across the board, and after the Cabinet embarked on
sustained effort to introduce the long-awaited reforms to the public sector.
His Majesty’s letter is our roadmap to the future, and we need
to open our hearts and minds to embrace the spirit of optimism and faith in
Jordanians’ ability to rise and make a tangible difference to their lives,
inspired by a legacy of achievement that is only denied by those blinded by
their apathetic attitude and lack of concern for the interests of their country
and fellow Jordanians.
King Abdullah tells Jordanians that the “nation was built by
its people who firmly believed in it, and excelled and sacrificed. Our duty is
to build on their efforts. The choices we make today will chart the future of
the next generations. Let us work together, in mutual trust, faith, and
solidarity to provide a decent life in our homeland, for the present and the
future”.
As the Dalai Lama once said, “in order to carry a positive
action, we must develop a positive vision”.
Our leadership has presented its positive vision, and we all
need to respond by engaging in the positive action that is taking shape as we
speak. It is high time.
The writer is a former advisor at the Royal Hashemite Court,
a former director of media and communication at the Office of His Majesty King
Abdullah, and works currently as a senior advisor for business development at
Al-Ghad News and Jordan News.
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