Loan payments delayed by six months for Representatives Council staff

TDT | Manama

Council of Representatives secretary-general Chancellor Rashid Mohammed Bu Najama said yesterday that the Council’s Secretariat-General is keen to implement His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa’s directives to unify national efforts and take the necessary precautionary and preventive measures to combat coronavirus (COVID-19) and curb its spread.

In this regard, Chancellor Bu Najma said that the Speaker of the Council of Representatives, Fawzia bint Abdulla Zainal, has given directives to delay the payment of interest-free loans for six month for the Secretariat-General’s staff, to support them and ensure the stability of their living conditions, amid the current circumstances.

He said that based on the speaker’s directives, pregnant employees and those with special needs were exempted from reporting to the Council of Representatives during official working hours.

The number of employees at the Council during its official working hours will be reduced to 50 per cent and the staff will wok alternately in a way that would not affect the Parliament’s work, he added. He affirmed that everything is ready to hold virtual parliamentary committee meetings, out of the keenness to ensure the continuity of parliamentary work and serve the citizens.

He also indicated that the Secretariat-General has developed an integrated plan to train its staff online, in line with the Representatives Council’s strategies to use modern technology and digital transformation techniques in its work