THE STORY OF UAE BY MOHD BIN RASHID AL. MAKTOUM PART 1
MY VISION - CHALLENGES IN THE RACE OF EXCELLENCE- THE STORY OF UAE BY MOHD BIN RASHID AL. MAKTOUM
Preamble
Prophet
Mohammed (PBUH) once said, “none
of you will be a true believer, until he wishes for his brother whatever
good he wishes for himself.” I wish the same good for my own people as I do for all Arabs – by Moh. Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
Our distinctive development experience in the UAE is a good example
of what can be done when God blesses
a country with unselfish leadership that strives for its good of the people and not its own good. Good leadership put the interest
of the community as a whole, before those of specific group. Credibility of
leadership can only be established through action and not words.
Our vision is sharp, our goals are clear, our resources are large, our
will is strong, and we stand tall,
ready to face the challenges ahead. Our mission
is for Dubai to become an international pioneering hub of excellence and
creativity, and we are already striving to make it the world’s premier trade,
tourism and service destination in the 21st century. We are
confident we can reach the ambitious goals thanks to our dedicated leadership
and by providing the necessary infrastructure and environment.
To reach these goals, we have to
show our people the right direction and nurture their potential for innovation,
creativity, self-confidence, determination and leadership.
Those who lead from the top of the pyramid end up leading
only those at the top, which is not how an exclusive
development exercise should be carried out. This is because development is a
common and concerted effort and requires
common leadership, a true leader should select leaders from the rank of his own people.
Once he selects the right leaders, they will
join him in forging ahead to the final destination.
As Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) once explained, “Religion is all
about sincerity” when we asked him for whom, he replied,
’For Allah, his Book,
his Messenger and for the leaders of Muslims and their masses
It was also reported that Javin Bin
Abdullahi, a companion of the prophet, once said; “I gave the pledge of allegiance to the prophet for offering prayer perfectly, giving Zakat (alms) and giving
good advice to every Muslim’’.
This book was written with the
aim of providing advice and explaining our experience to our Arab brethren in
the sincere hope that they will find it helpful to achieve their own purpose.
We consider
the achievement of the UAE and Dubai the achievements of all Arabs
PULSE OF DEVELOPMENT
A nation development does not
happen overnight or by accident. Nor does the development of a nation ever stop
once the process has begun. Nation building is a result of intense efforts at
building a community and homeland; a phenomenon task not undertaken lightly but
shouldered by a nation’s government, its public and private sectors and its
people. Responding to rapidly changing conditions that ricochet around the
world at breakneck speed.
To achieve this, a modern infrastructure is not enough, we must have vision and
flexibility to embrace change, to continuously adapt and to improve our
personal performance and our commitment to service.
To lay solid foundation for our country’s future, we must build upon the
achievements forged by our founding
fathers and achievements that must not stop with our generation but must continue
and be perpetuated by future generations. History shows no mercy for weaklings. Sheikh Zayed and my father, Sheik Rashid,
our beloved late leaders, never waited for history
to record their fears; they were proactive in making history themselves and in doing so, set the benchmark
for us to follow.
In
today’s fast paced world, if
you are not leading, you will be left behind.
Failure is not falling to the ground; it is remaining there once you have fallen, and the greatest
failure is when you decide not to stand up again.
UAE leadership understands that if their country lags behind
others economically, it will be left behind. It knows that large scale development will not only
improve the country’s physical infrastructure but eliminate unemployment, ignorance, poverty and illness.
When nations
fail to develop, they become vulnerable to a collapse in security and stability and loose the foundations on which their prosperity was built.
The secret behind a nation’s greatness do not lie in its military clout.
History abound with nations made powerful by their military forces but in reality,
they are powerless with fledging economies.
THE VISION
The first impossibility conquered was the establishment of UAE in 1971 as a new federation and Sheik Zayed as the
President. Lesson learnt was our leaders have genuine
interest of the well-being of the people.
The second impossibility was the construction of
Jebel Ali Port in 1971, the largest manmade port in a remote area devoid of water, vegetation and people, during the great
depression.
An original
vision is the one that allows you to grasp the future.
A visionary leader
should adhere to his vision,
fully confident that he sees things that those in his entourage
may not be able to perceive and his visions
should fulfil its set goals.
A true leader’s vision should reflect the following.
The country interest in the vision, interest of the community and
business community of the people who will benefit
from it and how. In what way will
it promote development and enhance
achievements from previous
visions.
Vision is a race for victory
in a bloodless battle for development. A good leader crystallizes its vision, defines
its objectives, narrate
its development and surpasses
its implementation. This should be done with one goal on mind; that of serving
the purpose and enhancing the status of the country. Progress or development is
not a wish or favour or even a gesture of generosity on the part of the leader
but a permanent, unconditional commitment by the leader, the government and all
its civil servant, its people towards the nation
Dubai hosts expatriates of all
nationalities, its dedicated towards bringing peace to all nations of the
world. We believe that war very rarely settles a problem peace cannot solve and
that calm dialogue is more effective than tension and implacability.
Dubai residents primarily focus
their energies on collectively enhancing their quality of life contributing to
emirate prosperity and building its present and future.
Dubai is not a place for anyone
who believes otherwise. It's recognized as one of the
safest cities in the world. The people of Dubai are responsible for the peace because
they are all investors in making it so,
despite a capable police force.
Ø The development of the younger
generations is also a prime target of the UAE Agenda. Any development must aim
at keeping the younger generation to keep pace with new economy but also take
the initiative and lead.
Ø This requires changes in the
curriculum, training, thinking as well as in government procedures and
priorities.
Ø We must not only provide our
youths with best schools, colleges, universities, but also specialised institution capable of promoting their initiative and innovative spirit.
Ø Nations are only as successful as their younger
generation and achieving success as a national responsibility not
limited to government only.
LEADERSHIP
A rarer
type of leader is one who uses its astuteness, intelligence and leadership skills
to provide events
that shape life and consequently history. The most gifted leader is, however, one who does not
shape only the present, but a good part of the future as well. These are some
of the qualities of a great leader, but another is a rare gift from God - to be blessed with love of his people. A
leader might be feared or respected but to be truly loved by his people is
something every great leader aspires to achieve.
Some attributes success to the
luck of a leader but the luckiest leader is the one who makes his own luck. Opportunities are created by true leaders; they don’t just lie there for you
to grab it.
True and original leadership must be free of arrogance, condescension,
over confidence and the belief that one is incapable of ever being wrong.
Anyone who admires his leader
greatly and seeks his respect and trust, should be frank with him and tell him
about his mistakes or faults and advise him about the right way.
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