HRH premier chairs cabinet meeting

The cabinet has condemned, in the strongest terms, acts of sabotage, rioting and targeting of public and private property and security personnel, stressing that those illegal practices are widely denounced by both official and public sides. The Cabinet asserted that freedom of opinion is guaranteed by the kingdom's constitution, laws and democratic march, adding that what is being done by some sides has nothing to do with that, but aims to harm national economy and disrupt the interests of the citizens and companies, which, it pledged, will be faced by the force of law. The cabinet also affirmed that the repeated attempts to destabilize the kingdom are the result of incitement carried out by internal and foreign sides, as part of their aim to disrupt the region's security and stability. This came as His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa chaired at the Gudaibiya Palace today the Cabinet regular weekly meeting. According to the Secretary-General of the Cabinet Dr. Yasser bin Isa Al Nasser, the cabinet reiterated the government's keen interest to deal positively with the two houses of the National Assembly and consolidate mutual respect and fruitful cooperation with the Representatives Council, adding that ministers and state departments have already been instructed to cooperate fully with the Parliament in order to enable it to perform its auditing and legislative roles and maintain the perfect relations bonding the two constitutional authorities. Then, HRH Premier issued directives to all ministries and government bodies to remove all obstacles related to entry and visa procedures of businessmen, investors and tourists coming into Bahrain through its different exits, especially the Bahrain International Airport, in line with the recommendations submitted by the Deputy Premier and Chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Services, Social, Media, Transport and Communication Affairs Shaikh Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa on the mechanism aiming to consolidate the kingdom's openness through making a balance between its economic and tourism needs and security requirements. HRH Premier also instructed all ministries and state departments to be committed to the requirements of the National Audit Court Law by submitting detailed reports on the financial and administrative irregularities they discover. Regarding the government's efforts to combat using money collected by fake and unlicensed companies, the cabinet endorsed a draft law imposing a prison sentence on anyone who collects funds from other parties with the aim of investing them without being licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain or other authorized sides and a minimum of BD100,000 fine. According to the draft law, which will be referred to the National Assembly after constitutional and legal procedures are finalized, the mediator, agent and representative of those businesses will also be punished. The cabinet also decided to expand the duties of the Committee in Charge of Following up on the kingdom's commitment to the UN Security Council's resolutions, by requesting it to monitor efforts to combat terrorism. Members of the new-look panel, chaired by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, include the Interior Ministry, the Bahrain Defence Force (BDF), the National security Agency, the Human Rights and Social Development Ministry, Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments Ministry, Customs Affairs, Civil Aviation Affairs and the General Organisation of Sea Ports (GOP) will be its members. Then, the cabinet was informed on the progress of the project aiming to develop the issuance of trade registration system, in line with HRH Premier's directives to take advantage of the latest technology in government work in order to improve the kingdom's position in this regard. The cabinet also discussed and referred to the Ministerial Committee on Financial and Economic Affairs a request to extend the mandate of the Bahrain Aviation Fuelling Company in Bahrain by five years from 2013 and transfer the fuel stores from Arad. On the kingdom's development projects, the cabinet was informed by the Works Minister that up to 33 tenders have been awarded so far this year at a cost of BD 29,1 million and 20 others, costing BD 29,7, will be awarded later. Projects focused on roads network, sanitation and buildings. In this regard, HRH Premier commended the efforts exerted by the Works Minister and the Ministry's affiliates in order to implement the projects included in the government's work plan. Then, the cabinet approved four proposals submitted by the Representatives Council, including the calculation of waiting years since the application for housing services, measures to be taken against taxi drives violating laws and regulations, establishment of an Elderly Care Centre in Hamad Town and setting up of a government committee to address road accidents. Finally, the Cabinet was briefed on the results of the kingdom's participation in the 32nd Summit of the Arab League, held recently in Baghdad, the second "Friends of Syrian People" Conference, hosted by Turkey, the first meeting of the Strategic Cooperation Forum between the GCC Foreign Ministers and U.S, held in Riyadh last month, the 39th conference of the Arab Labour Organization, held in Cairo earlier this month and the 313th session of the Governing Body of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva. The Transport Minister also informed the Cabinet on the outcome of his recent visit to Singapore.