DOHA: Several experts and academics have called for conferring executive powers to the Central Municipal Council (CMC) but a top CMC official has disagreed with this idea saying it could lead to more confusion.
“I don’t support the idea of giving executive powers to the CMC because this would create overlapping of duties and more confusion,” CMC Chairperson Saud Abdullah Al Hanzab was quoted as saying by an Arabic daily.
He said, the CMC which is now in its fourth term has matured enough to understand its role and its limitations.
“I took part in all the CMC sessions. Due to lack of experience, we didn’t understand the law correctly and this had led to clashes with the Ministry of Municipality of Urban Planning. Now in the fourth term, we have gained enough experience about the law and our mandate. This has helped us cooperate with the Ministry in a better manner,” said Al Hanzab.
Over the one and a half years since the beginning of the fourth term, CMC passed 64 recommendations and most of them were accepted by the authorities concerned and some of them are currently under study, he added.
Many experts on other hand have called for amending the CMC law giving it more powers, including the authority to execute decisions. “Many people think that CMC has powers rather than giving recommendations, This is not the fact since its role is only advisory and it can only pass recommendations,” said prominent Qatari lawyer Abdul Rahman Al Jefairi.
He said even the last amendment of the CMC law didn’t take the recommendations of the Council into account. All these recommendations had to pass through the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning which has the right to accept or reject them. Otherwise they have take up the recommendations to the Cabinet which has the power to intervene in disputes between the Ministry and the CMC, he added. “ It is important to review the law to give more powers to the CMC including executive powers,” said Al Jefairi.
Ahmed Al Khalaf, Qatari businessman said, CMC is not an executive or legislative body.
“The CMC members should be aware of their role and should not give too many promises to the people,” he said.
He felt that the current session of the CMC is better in terms of cooperation with the Ministry.
Dr Yousuf Obaidan, profeessor of Qatar University said that the CMC has enriched the political culture in the country and empowered Qatari women by giving them the right to vote and contest in the elections.
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