Middle East Information Resource
Political Entities - al-Maktum
Al-Maktum The clan or dynasty of sheikhs ruling the small sheikhdom of Dubai, in the Trucial Coast of Oman and since 1971 the United Arab Emirates. The first ruler during independence was Sheikh Rashed ibn Sa`id al-Maktum, from 1958 to 1990. He succeeded his father, Sheikh Sa`id, in 1958, after his death. He served as Vice President of the UAE from 1971 to 1990, and Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990. His son, Sheikh Maktum, succeeded him and has been the Prime Minister of the UAE from 1971 to 1979 and since 1990. Sheikh Rashed and his son also held the position of the Vice President of the UAE since its creation in 1971. Sheikh Maktum`s younger brother Muhammad Rashed al-Maktum has been Defense Minister of the UAE since its creation, and younger brother Hamdan Rashed al-Maktum has been Minister of Finance and Economy. There is said to be rivalry and friction among them.
The al-Maktum clan, as rulers of Dubai, have been in constant rivalry with the rulers of Abu Dhabi, of the al-Nuhayan clan, over leadership of the UAE and over its shape and constitution. The Maktums insist on the retention of substantial autonomy of the individual sheikhdoms, mainly Dubai, and oppose powerful federal institutions. They do not want the Sheikh of Abu Dhabi as President of the UAE. The positions held by the al-Maktum clan in the Federal government represent a careful balance of power, which has been the result of nearly constant struggle.