I’m pretty sure Hamad bin Issa al-Khalifa, the king of Bahrain, isn’t the only politician around the world whose anus must be clenching heavily after the whole Egypt thing. But he is the first one so far who has really gone out of his way to double check that all his peasants are still happily working the fields instead of marching towards his mansion.

In a less than savoury, he has given each family under his rule 1,000 dinars – or R20 000. According to Wikipedia there are about 800 000 people living in Bahrain. Divide this number by four to arrive at a rough numeral estimate of families, and we are looking at a minimum payout of about R3 billion.

Of course the official card next to each wad of cash reads: “On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the National Action Charter and as a sign of appreciation for the people of Bahrain who have approved it, King Hamad bin Issa al-Khalifa has ordered 1,000 dinars to be paid to every Bahraini family.”

And while you might think that this is an incredibly generous act, consider these pictures.

I’m sure you know the guy on the left

MJ’s not dead – he just started wearing cowboy hats

For a king of a country rich in oil, pearls, and photo opportunities with MJ, R3 billion is a small price to pay in order to keep the villagers happy.

[Source: UPI]