EPISODE FOURTEEN
During
this period of preparation I contacted the chief finance officer to find
the exact cost of forming and maintaining each unit in the armed forces.
He was at a loss.
The Egyptian
military budget is prepared according to function or specialization, and
not according to total unit or department cost. For example, the food department
will calculate expenses for food, while another department will calculate
expenses for kitchen utensils and equipment; one department will budget
for vehicles while another figures for fuel. Consequently, it was impossible
to compare the cost of a squadron of fighter aircraft against a brigade
of anti-air missiles, and as Chief of Staff, it was impossible to
make careful decisions based on cost effectiveness.
The chief
finance officer began the long and difficult task of retrieving the information
I had asked for, however, as a preliminary step I requested to see how
the budget was distributed proportionally among major requirements of the
armed forces. The 1973 budget was distributed accordingly:
Salaries,
food, accommodation 68%
Armament
13%
Technical
support
9%
Fortifications
6%
Other items
4%
------------------------------------------------
Total
100%
In a developed
country in which arms access is limited only by what can be afforded, the
usual sequence is to first determine a defense allotment and then decide
how to best use it to serve the interests of the country. The first step
is a political decision, the second step a military one, yet each greatly
influenced by the other and requiring cooperation between politicians and
the military. In the case of third World countries, the issues regarding
the defense budget and access to arms are much more complicated. Arms supply
is always controlled by the superpowers according to many factors, including
the following: the balance of power between the two superpowers in the
area; the technological capabilities of the country to absorb modern and
sophisticated weapons; the wealth of the country and its capability to
pay for the arms; and how far the country is bound by foreign policy not
to use these weapons in a way that might be in contradiction with the interests
of the arms supplier. Consequently, decision makers in the Third World
countries have very little chance to choose the arms and weapons they really
need.
On August
26,1973 I attended a dinner party in honor of al-`Aqiyd (Colonel)
Mu`ammar
al-Qadhdhafiy
who had arrived unexpectedly in Cairo. I was seated next to the
Minister of Finance and Economy, Dr. Higaziy During
the course of the evening we discussed the problem of the military
budget. As it turned out, Dr. Higaziy's doctorate
was in the type of budget preparation we so, desperately needed and he
was enthusiastic about helping to find a solution.
Following
the dinner party, however, events moved quickly toward D-Day, and unfortunately,
we were never able to resolve the problems of the Egyptian military budget.
(To be continued)
"When you have the force
of momentum in war, even the timid can be courageous. So it is possible
to choose them for their capabilities and give them the appropriate responsibilities.
The brave can fight, the careful can guard, the intelligent can communicate.
No one is useless. Getting people to fight by letting the force of momentum
work is like rolling logs and rocks, logs and rocks are still when in a
secure place, but roll on an incline; they remain stationary as if they
were square. Therefore, when people are skillfully led into battle, the
momentum is like that of round rocks rolling down a high mountain
-- this is force!" (Sun Tzu Chinese warrior-philosopher) |
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