Last February, Yemen applauded newly elected President Abdurabu Hadi. After the fall of the 33 year Ali Saleh regime, reformists saw hope for change. Youth activists were promised freedom and Yemenis were promised equality. Being a Hadi fan myself, I have hope Hadi can deliver.
With that said, analysts are worried Hadi is shifting in the wrong direction. They say he is assigning corrupt relatives atop of Yemen’s petroleum industry. Their worries raise the below (is it true questions.)
Is it true that a large portion of the country’s lucrative industries are now being controlled by President Hadi relatives?
Is it true that Hadi is now threatening ministers who refuse to obey orders linked to financial corruption? Hadi demanded the Minister of Finance to approve a long list of names who would be paid millions of dollars on a monthly basis (loyalty cash) and includes previous officials, tribesmen, and dignitaries in exchange for nothing but their loyalty. If so, this is the same game Saleh followed and resulted in people revolting against him.
Is it true that international backed Hadi is building his own empire using the people’s wealth?
Is it true that many of Hadi’s relatives have been assigned senior government posts, the last being this week where a relative was assigned as deputy Minister of Interior?
Yemen is living through a crushing hunger crisis with millions living under the poverty line. The Yemen revolution is handicapped at a time they see their sister nation (Egypt) taking the next step to building a powerful nation.
Corruption is still a dangerous virus in Yemen where the elite eat the poor. Politicians are silenced in return for financial gains. The elite say that poverty is forcing them to consider corruption to live. We hope that Hadi does not lead the road of the new batch of corrupt officials.
Lets quickly bring up a critical point in Yemen war against al-Qaeda: last week, 24 senior al-Qaeda members escaped one of the most secured prisons in Yemen without being censored. Does the incident raise questions or speculations?
Analysts say that Yemen is entering a political cloning era!

ABOUT Yemen Post Publisher & Chief Editor:

Hakim Almasmari is an American journalist and Middle East expert based in Sana'a, Yemen. His work has appeared for many of the worlds top media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, CNN, Washington Post, AlJazeera, Fox News, The Guardian, The National, USA Today among numerous others. He has also worked with some of the world’s top organizations. Reporting out of Yemen for nearly eight years, he is the current editor in chief for the Yemen Post. He is a university lecturer in the field of international media and also studied business and law. Considered one of the top experts on Yemen, Almasmari has closely worked with international strategic centers and think tanks helping them better understand Yemen. He is a frequent guest on many international TV outlets discussing current local and international affairs. Almasmari's ancestors are from Yemen, and was born in Detroit, Michigan, USA. His mother tongue is English and is fluent in Arabic.