Sheikh Hamad bin Jabr Al Thani exhibited extreme cool and replied convincingly when a Qatari member of the audience criticised the Planning Council and said it had belied the hopes of the common man. Hasan Al Jaffiri launched a tirade against the government and some of its policies. "I was happy when the council was founded but am dejected now," said Al Jaffiri, calling for a bigger role for the private sector in the GCC in industrial development. He also blasted Qatar's e-government project for being slow.
"It is a huge project. Adequate infrastructure needs to be built to support it and it takes time. Qatar is a pioneer in this field," said Sheikh Hamad bin Jabr. "We are a strategic agency," he said of the Planning Council.
"We have a definite role and closely interact with other departments," he said. "You are elder to me by a few years and you should be aware more than I am that we as a country have a come a long way," said Sheikh Hamad.
Quelle: The Peninsula, 15.04.2006
