HOW READY ARE WE?
I think we say some things by rote.
We become obsessed with any “thing” we want to happen, more than its consequences, and just want it to happen.
But do we ask ourselves this question?
If it happens, how ready are we?
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We all want Ercan Airport to open to the whole world, don't we?
And especially if Famagusta Port were opened as well, it would make it all the sweeter for us.
But don't you think that wanting these things—that is, calling for the lifting of the isolation measures—has become a phrase we repeat by rote?
For a long time, all our politicians have been using the same phrase; in fact, we could say it is the only issue on which our politicians agree.
Wanting the isolation measures to be lifted and voicing this at every opportunity is, at first glance, the right approach.
However, we have yet to hear any well-founded ideas from them about what will happen if the isolation measures are lifted.
I believe it would be more useful for all of us to talk about what we can do afterward, rather than simply calling for the isolation measures to be lifted.
Why?
Because it is obvious that, after years of unjust embargoes, our dysfunctional system and non-standard practices will create very different problems for us as we try to adapt to the new situation.
As the old saying goes, I feel we will be “like fish out of water.”
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The statement the Prime Minister made the other day revealed another non-standard practice of ours.
The Prime Minister said that a law on casinos would be passed in the coming days and that they would strengthen this sector, known as “games of chance,” with legislation that meets European Union standards.
Judging by these remarks, I think we are once again late in meeting the standards.
The Prime Minister also said, “We will not allow gangs to take root in the country.”
That is what the Prime Minister said, but doesn't the mafia shootout in Kyrenia show that gangs have already taken root in the country?
As far as I can tell from following both the local and Turkish press, doesn't the phrase “mafia settling of scores” refer to a settling of scores among the existing mafia that has taken root in the country?
I think this confirms the point I made a moment ago: that “gangs have already taken root in the country.”
The Prime Minister's forceful statements and the measures being taken on this issue create the impression that the necessary steps will be taken to prevent the same events from happening again; I hope they succeed.
But how sound an approach is it to think there is no mafia where there are casinos, or to try to prevent it? That is another question.
Another reality on this issue is how the people of the TRNC view casinos.
Everyone I have spoken with so far is unhappy that casinos are in our country.
Because almost everyone makes the same observation: guests who come to our country to gamble do not leave their hotels and do not contribute in any way to businesses in the TRNC.
I think the Prime Minister should also take the public's perspective into account on this issue.
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Some of you may have thought that I was straying from our main subject while discussing this issue.
On the contrary, we are right at the heart of it.
The state of our “casinos,” which form the foundation of the tourism sector from which we expect substantial revenue if the isolation measures are lifted, will have a major impact on the proportion of tourists we dream of attracting to our country.
That is why it is very important for the current government to be genuinely determined on this issue!
To return to where we began, beyond the phrase we now repeat by rote—“let the isolation measures be lifted”—we should consider what we will do if they are lifted; we should question whether we currently meet global standards and develop policies and ideas on these issues.
Otherwise, as “fish out of water,” not knowing how to correct the existing mistakes or where to start will only cost us time.
In short, immediately after saying or hearing the phrase—“let the isolation measures be lifted”—we should ask ourselves: “How ready are we for the new situation that will arise?”
See you on Wednesday, and be courteous in traffic.