Panel Rejected The Controversial Proposal Submitted By Mp Safaa Al-hashem

Members of the Parliamentary Committee on Interior and Defense have unanimously rejected the controversial proposal submitted by MP Safaa Al-Hashem in January, which urged the Government to impose exorbitant fee of KD 1,000 on any expatriate applying for driver’s license, in addition to the annual renewal fee of KD 500 and extra KD 500 for the renewal of vehicle documents.

The MP had also called for the dismissal of applications for renewing the documents of vehicles 10 years old and above. The committee also refused another proposal from the MP suggesting that family visa applications other than those submitted for parents should be rejected, and that visit visa fees should be increased by 100 percent.

She had also recommended stipulation of 10 years maximum residence visa for expatriates, within which it should be renewed once, with the exemption of few extremely important professions.

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In their opinion, members of the committee observed that the first proposal was very essential in reducing the rate of traffic congestion but the associated fees were outrageous. They understood the majority of expatriate workers receive meager salaries that are insufficient for such fees. They stated that all members of the committee were unanimous in their decision to reject the proposal after thorough deliberations and exchange of viewpoints.

As regards the second proposal, they said the idea of preventing expatriates from inviting members of their families other than parents and increasing visa fees by 100 percent amount to extra burden on the sponsors.

They stressed that fixing a maximum period of ten years for residence visa could as well be detrimental to the labor market, because there will be shortage of the needed workers.

However, the committee approved the recommendation to mandate contractors handling government projects to ensure their workers travel back after completing projects. It also included the idea of activating the role of government electronically to evaluate the actual number of workers the companies need for projects, and to stop random assessments.

SOURCE : ARABTIMES

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