Mohammad Bin Rashid … decisive stands
Principles of competency and efficiency in managing matters have been deeply rooted in the personality of the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai since he was in his 20s
When I started writing this article, I thought of a headline reading ‘Mohammad Bin Rashid and 10 years of prosperity’, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the accession of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
Yet, a few minutes later, I changed my mind, as 10 years or any specific number does not give this veteran and visionary leader due credit. Today, Shaikh Mohammad is the focus of any discussion about creativity and innovation. He is also highly admired by people all over the world — from East to West.
Shaikh Mohammad’s agenda is full of innovative plans and programmes as well as new initiatives that surpass the previous ones. Every day, he adds new inspirational ideas, most notably the way he handled the fire that broke out in the Address Downtown hotel on New Year’s Eve. The best headline that I decided for this article is ‘Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid ... decisive stands’.
In fact, the principles of decisiveness and efficiency in managing matters have been deeply rooted in the personality of Shaikh Mohammad since he was in his 20s. If I put myself among veteran witnesses who have followed the various events and developments that happened in the UAE, and Dubai specifically, over the past 50 years, I am indeed one of the witnesses to the UAE’s modern history.
The first signs of Shaikh Mohammad’s merits and principles of competency and efficiency emerged when he stood firmly against the tyranny of a British police officer who was brought to the UAE to hold the post of chief of Dubai Police from 1959-1965. British police officer Peter Lorimar, who grew up under the colonial British-Indian administration, was known for his arrogance and negligence.
Back then, the British military authority, represented by the political agent, who was the senior representative of the British government in the Trucial States, took the upper hand over the UAE in handling its affairs.
Grass-roots solution
Shaikh Mohammad maintained that it was improper for Dubai to have an arrogant police chief like Lorimar. So, he insisted on Lorimar’s dismissal, which was done.
In another incident, Shaikh Mohammad’s competence was clearly manifested in his decisiveness in making the right decisions when he led the Dubai Defence Force, which later became part of the Union Defence Force, in the early years of the Union.
During that time, some young people were misled by foreign radical and fundamentalist groups. Those people were arrested to face trial. However, Shaikh Mohammad met those youths and pardoned them, and they went on to become good citizens and returned to mainstream society.
The way Shaikh Mohammad handled this issue was a grass-roots solution that nipped the problem in the bud. This would not have been possible without farsightedness, wisdom and good management that characterised Shaikh Mohammad.
In the very early years of the Union, specifically on January 25, 1972, Shaikh Khalid Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, former ruler of Sharjah, was assassinated in an abortive coup. This was one of the serious events in the UAE’s modern history that touched all Emiratis. Shaikh Mohammad, as Defence Minister, stood firmly to resolve this strife,
Shaikh Mohammad is among thoughtful, wise, brilliant and decisive leaders who will go down in history for his merits and qualities as a leader, man, ruler and intellectual.
with his strong will and determination. This stand was appreciated by the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and other rulers.
The UAE’s history is full of red-letter events and incidents that can be lessons for the younger generations to learn from and guide them on the right path towards a better future.
Shaikh Mohammad is among thoughtful, wise, brilliant and decisive leaders who will go down in history for his merits and qualities as a leader, man, ruler and intellectual.
We here should repeat what President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan said in his congratulatory cable addressed to Shaikh Mohammad: “Thank you Shaikh Mohammad ... 10 years of unique governmental philosophy and exceptional leadership.”
Abdul Ghaffar Hussain is a UAE researcher and writer.
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