This only points in one direction - they just want time to cover-up.
It is folly to assume that incompetence has a purpose... Incompetence is just what it says it is. Having lived and worked in the region, the way the communication is being handled fully meets my expectations.
That being said, there is probably plenty we do not know, but that is likely being withheld to save face or preserve egos rather than as a piece of a grander scheme. Everything seems to point in the direction that even those supposedly in the know are just as confused as we are here on the forum, just their high office precludes admitting that.