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Opinion: Is Libya Degaddafinated?
[Tripoli Post] To Degaddafinate is; to physically remove Qadaffy from Libya, a term invented by Libyans on Twitter. Libyans and the world made the unreasonable assumption that as soon as Qadaffy is removed from the country, it would immediately and automatically change gears from an armed rebellion into the building and construction mode; unfortunately this is not the case.

The transfer from a conflict zone into a productive trouble-free environment is in itself a challenging process because during the last year the country came to a screeching halt. So many issues need to be resolved to have everything back to working order.

The reasons for these delays are many. But I think that the largest obstacle is, that Libya is completely devoid of any governing mechanisms or civic institutions that can run the country. The tyrannical, one-band show tactics, that Qadaffy employed to run Libya, meant that once the country was degaddafinated, a large gaping power vacuum was created.

Though, the country is degaddafinated from Qadaffy's presence, the mindset that he saddled the country with still lives on. The Libyan people have suffered many horrendous injustices under Qadaffy's rule, which has made them very distrustful of any sort of authority. That is why they are not fully cooperating with the transitional authorities as much as they should, which is making life more difficult than it really is. It is proving counterproductive at a time when cooperation is desperately needed to keep the country on the right track.

One of the many survival tactics adopted by Libyans is a cloud of pessimism that completely envelopes them. That's because when you have low or no expectations there can be no disappointments.

Libyans briefly expelled their gloomy clouds during the revolution to experience a happiness that most of them have never before felt. But the many unfulfilled promises by the National Transitional Council, NTC, and the government, are causing these clouds of pessimism in the hearts and minds of Libyans.

Since the liberation of Libya, the NTC has taken the brunt of criticism from Libyans on a wide range of issues. The NTC may have made some errors, and tit is by no means perfect.

While some of the criticism is constructively valid and needs to be taken seriously, a large part of it is the backlash, of the Libyan people exercising the civil liberties they have regained after 42 year s of hijacking by Qadaffy and his cronies, a degaddafination after product.

The NTC should be regarded as a legislative vehicle to transport Libya from anarchy to democracy as part of a road map in a specified time frame. Therefore, and its performance should only be evaluated in performing that duty.

The Libyan people need to acknowledge that the NTC does not possess a magic wand to vanquish away their many troubles. It needs to assume its duties and refrain from interfering with other matters that fall into the jurisdiction of the government. Since the degaddafination, patience is hard to come by in Libya.

It's worth mentioning, that though El Keeb's is not an elected government, the Libyan people have great confidence in it's ability to run Libya until an elected government can take over.

During the Qadaffy era, Libya was suffering from a high unemployment rate particularly among young people. This is very peculiar in a country with such a low population. It was intentional, in order to demoralise the Libyan youth and prompt them, either to leave the country in search of a better life or stay in Libya and self-destruct.

Little did Qadaffy know that, it is these same youths who would degaddafinate Libya and hammer in the final nails in his coffin. The government is now providing these youths with several employment opportunities according to their qualifications and their wishes in order to reward them for their efforts and sacrifices, and also to keep them out of trouble and integrate them back into society.

Great strides have also been made by the interim government to put in place the foundations required for the country to start the the rebuilding stage, because the country has for far too long been deprived of the vital infrastructure.

Very few high level roads exist in the country, even in the capital, Tripoli, which is supposedly the most developed part of Libya. A recent survey revealed that only 40% of Tripoli has surfaced roads, and these few were constructed in a haphazard way below the required standards, most often lacking the lighting or gutters.

It is indeed shocking that a country with the resources that Libya has, could have been left in such a state of neglect.

The hospitals in Libya are also in a very dilapidated state. The nursing institution that is the spine of the medical profession does not even exist, which is indeed sad. I am confident that if a high level nursing college was to be set up in Libya many young men and women would be happy to enrol in it.

They would be most happy to support the brilliant Libyan doctors who are keen to serve their country but find themselves helpless, because all they can offer is a diagnosis as they don't have the equipment nor the nursing to help their patience. As such, they find themselves unwillingly having to refer their patients to hospitals outside of Libya.

Schools and universities are also in urgent need of an upgrade. This is year 2012, the era of the computer, yet most Libyan schools lack enough computers. If any, the ones they have are old and have been collecting dust in some corner. They are just dusted for exhibition purposes.

This means that teachers are denied the use of a great teaching tool. Students too are deprived the chance of becoming proficient in the use of a tool that is necessary for them to survive in this day and age.

Qadaffy spent dirhams on Libya but pocketed billions of dinars in oil revenue. What one of his sons would spend on a birthday bash by flying in international stars to perform on his private yacht is bigger than the whole country's budget for a year.

It was the norm in Libya, that in most government sectors workers' salaries were paid late, which is outrageous, especially when one considers the price of a barrel of oil and the millions of barrels that are sold every day.

But such delays were no surprise to Libyans if one recalls what one of the former dictator's sons, Muatassim once audaciously said, that is, that "what is below the ground, (in reference to Libya's oil) belongs to my father; and what is on the ground belongs to us'" referring to the various economical activities that were divided between himself and his siblings.

I hasten to add that I notice that the Libyan people were not included in that very unbalanced equation.

Due to lack of spending, the whole country's institutions have suffered, are in very bad shape and in urgent need of replacement or repair. You name it, it needs repair, whether it is schools, universities or government office buildings.

The few roads and bridges that the country has or airports and ports are in need of maintenance. Nothing seems to work efficiently. It is a miracle how Libyans were even surviving, in such miserable conditions.

These bad living conditions were the catalyst that prompted the people to rise against Qadaffy's tyranny and corruption, and degaddafinate their lives from his unbearable presence.
Posted by: Fred 2012-02-07
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=338566