A PROPOSAL to slash the five-year validity of a driving licence for an expatriate and align it with the expiry of the residence permits will be debated by MPs during their weekly session today.

The move to amend the 2014 Traffic Law has been presented by five MPs led by Jalal Kadhem.

They believe that the measure will tackle ongoing violations by expatriates illegally residing in Bahrain following the expiry of their work permits and engaging in unauthorised work such as driving unauthorised taxis.

The parliamentarians also said they firmly believed that the move will reduce traffic congestion in the country with fewer licences being issued.

Currently, Bahrainis and expatriates are granted five-year driving licences.

Parliament’s foreign affairs, defence and national security committee has backed the proposal, while the Interior Ministry has urged MPs to reject it.

Existing

“The issue is already governed by law which states that expatriates should have a valid residency permit when applying for training, testing, getting the actual licence or renewing an existing one,” said the ministry.

“The proposal is illogical and inapplicable and will lead to statistic disruptions in the electronic system and confusion among traffic police implementing the rules,” it added.

“Aligning licence validity with residency permit validity will not reduce traffic congestion as MPs believe, with many expatriates already having valid licences but opting to use company or public transport.

“We don’t need to fix a system that is not broken.”

The National Institution for Human Rights (NIHR) said the proposal did not violate any human rights since it doesn’t restrict or prevent the movement of expats.

“It is purely organisational and doesn’t breach the equality status, expatriates’ freedom or international human rights conventions or treaties,” it said.

MPs are also set to debate a new legislation that would force independent government authorities and government-owned companies to achieve 100pc Bahrainisation within two years of the law being issued.

The Civil Service Commission said that companies did not come under its jurisdiction.

However, it added that 6,979 expats, which is 16 per cent of the total government workforce, were under contract with ministries, authorities and government bodies until April this year.

Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company also told MPs in writing that the move doesn’t allow it flexibility to hire suitable candidates that match its needs.

The company, which is Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, said it has achieved 88.6pc Bahrainisation and affiliate companies have reached 83.4pc with 12,000 Bahrainis being employed.

Parliament will also debate proposed amendments to the 2001 Companies Law which, if approved, would see Mumtalakat and affiliate companies losing their ‘special classification’ bringing them in line with any other company in the country.

This would require Mumtalakat and affiliates to make legal, technical and financial changes within three years of the law being issued.

The ministries of Finance and National Economy, and Industry and Commerce said the special status for some companies was aimed to protect dynamic sectors that have significance on other aspects directly and indirectly.

Meanwhile, Parliament Speaker Ahmed Al Musallam has added pending topics to today’s schedule in a bid to clear them before the end of the year.

 

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