DO we conduct any studies on our social issues? Even if we have conducted such studies do we implement them to change our situation? I would like to refer to some newspaper headlines that appeared recently in order to highlight growing social problems in our country. * The family violence center received 1980 calls in three days: Okaz * 41 road accident deaths take place in the Kingdom daily: Al-Riyadh * Data of 2.5 million social insurance beneficiaries updated: Al-Hayat * Saudi courts handle 2,797 harassment cases in a year: Al-Riyadh * Five divorce cases occur in the Kingdom every hour: Al-Watan When we discuss social issues in the Kingdom, we'll understand that the main role of the ministries concerned is just to issue statistics and reports about various social problems rather than working to eradicate them or at least reduce their number. Even if there is a project to resolve a problem, you will not see any attempt to check how far the plan was successful in eradicating a problem and what must be done to make the plan more effective. For example, you will see the number of social insurance beneficiaries increasing year after year as if the matter is something to be proud of. The same is the case of divorces, road accidents and sexual harassment against women and children. I would like to list the following questions for our authorities to think and take remedial measures without further delay. * What was the change brought by the poverty alleviation fund since its establishment 13 years ago? * Was it successful in reducing the number of poor in our country? * How many people and families have been struck off from the poverty list? There is nothing to wonder if the minister of labor and social development says 87 percent of his ministry's budget goes to assistance with 69 percent of this amount being allocated for social insurance, 15 percent for social care and three percent for social development. The remaining 13 percent of the budget is spent on salaries and projects. Where is the budget for solving various social problems? Let me ask the Traffic Department the following question. * What was the result of Saher system five years after its implementation? * Was it successful in reducing road accidents and deaths? * Do we have any authentic social study on our problems? I have not seen any service ministry conducting a social study with the support of a Saudi university to reduce such problems in our society. Let me also ask our universities what is their role in boosting social development? Why don't they compete with one another in conducting such studies? I believe that allocations might have been made for conducting those studies but they remained on tables without being completed or implemented. Readers would forgive me for raising these questions without giving any answers or presenting any solutions. We have to think deeply what is the reason for the increasing number of divorce cases in our society? Do you think the occurring of five divorces in our society every hour something reasonable? At the same time we don't see any effort by authorities to study the reason for this appalling phenomenon to find a solution and their indifference shows that the matter is quite natural. Is it "natural" when the family violence center receives 1,980 calls in three days? Do you think this number is quite reasonable?
