Scatterbrained democracy

The dilemma is as follows: Either, to stand firm on the intrinsic principles of an emerging democracy, even if it means losing substantially on the economic front. Or, to accept less democratic governance (rather autocratic), in the hope of gaining more on the economic and material well-being front.

We are part of an Arab-Muslim culture, which is conservative and not always easy to interpret. The recent imprisonment of top figures of the Islamist party — including main opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi — demonstrates this, as if Tunisian Islam is settling scores…

It must be said that during the years when political islam governed (2011-2021), the Tunisian economy was seriously damaged, scarred by an exploding debt. All for the sake of a naive, economic democracy that relied entirely on appearances.

Everything indicates that since President Kaïs Saïed took control of the country's institutions on July 25, 2021, citizens generally choose the option of less democracy, hoping to benefit from more economic gains. But, this is not guaranteed, and not simple!

A way out

This uncomfortable dilemma has crystallized, with the different governments and parties in power. There have been a dozen governments (580 ministers), a thousand parliamentarians, a dozen parties, and 4 presidents. In just 11 years…

Our stated dilemma was omnipresent in the minds of many of these elites, as well as in those who put them in power by casting their ballots.

Yet there was always a way out of this dilemma!

Citizens could have completely avoided this predicament by imposing a minimum of rationality, and less emotion, to establish their understanding of democracy.

In well-established democratic societies, when a politician advances unwanted and ineffective policies without violating democratic rules and norms, people find ways to perceive the behavior as anti-democratic. And they revolt!

On the other hand, when a politician acts rather anti-democratically to promote economic policies that enrich rather than impoverish, citizens will gather arguments to consider them democratic. Citizens accept them based on a cost-benefit analysis.

Economy first

Therefore, it is not a deliberate acceptance, but a fundamentally different perceptual logic that motivates the widespread approval of anti-democratic behavior in today's democracies.

Humans are fundamentally governed by a rationality that favors survival and often maximizes goals under constraints of available resources.

The Tunisian delegation gave an impression of a country whose economy could implode at any moment.

This is the logic of optimization. A logic based on rationality. And common sense... However, this rationality is rather lacking in the policies currently being pursued by the stakeholders concerned.

Solving the dilemma means bringing more logic, more method, and more science into governance and State management.

More than constitutions and populist speeches, the democratization of Tunisia needs more rationality involving reasoning, demonstration, and anticipation.

When we use our logic function of our brains, we communicate to others a message of wisdom and credibility that generates trust and respect. This applies to humans as well as to economies, and political elites in general.

At the Spring Meetings of the IMF and World Bank, attended last week by 4,000 participants, the tiny Tunisian delegation gave an impression of ambivalence, of a country whose economy could implode at any moment…

Renowned macroeconomist and former Chief Economist at the IMF, Olivier Blanchard, offered his plain advice: "It looks bad in Tunisia, you have to reform your economy as a first step!"

Saving the Tunisian economy is a first step in saving the democratic transition! The urgency is vital…