Defending the Indefensible. Why Lebanese Politicians Deserve Higher Wages

Lebanese cartoonist Sareen Akharjalian gives politicians a whacking

There’s been a flurry of reactions to the report early this month that Lebanese politicians will be getting a wage hike on top of their already high salaries. The press, bloggers and people on facebook reacted angrily to the news, producing satirical comics and infographics in response.

The reaction is understandable, and as with drafting a new election law, asking politicians to pay themselves is tantamount to putting a wolf in charge of protecting the sheep. But in order not to succumb to the feel-good but useless demagoguery of “all politicians are evil”, I think it is essential to point out why Lebanese politicians get high wages.

Risk premium

Lebanese politicians, more than others, are constantly under threats of assassination and other bodily harm. Only recently both the leaders of the FPM and the LF have claimed that they were subject to assassination attempts. It is a rule that the higher the risk of a job, the higher the salary.

Return on investment

Lebanese politicians pay godless amounts of money to get elected. Even those who are not elected usually finance those who are elected in order to get jobs at ministries and bureaucracies. If the returns on such investments are paltry why would they want to invest in the first place? It would have been better to just buy government bonds with that money and get better returns.

Patronage

The job of Lebanese politicians includes taking care of their constituents. What we refer to as zaame involves inviting entire villages to lunch, sponsoring events and paying tuitions. This doesn’t come for cheap, and the Lebanese mentality is to blame for this: A politician is not a “public servant”, he’s a “zaïm”.

Scarcity

We are tempted to believe that anyone can be a Lebanese politician. But that is not an easy job and not a lot of people are made for it. In addition to your willingness to take risks, You have to be dealing 24/7 with people complaining, demanding favors, inviting you to events in the end of the world and getting insulted if you say no. You have to be representative of at least a few villages, You have to be able to deal with agressive journalists, skeptical questions, constant accusations treachery and of being evil, public mockery and endless debates with obnoxious politicians on the other side. Also you have to be eloquent and full of energy. This demands a combination of personality and skills that cannot be found in just anyone on the street.

People keep wondering why we keep electing the same people again and again. It’s not because we’re all idiots, it’s simply because these are the best people we’ve got so far.

Am I saying that Lebanese politicians should give themselves unlimited raises and perks? Of course not, we have to keep a watchful eye on them and strengthen NGOs and media that monitor their excesses. But we certainly don’t have to imagine that the politicians should be paying us money in gratitude for giving them those nasty jobs.