The Shoura Council will soon make its sessions public as deliberations in the consultative body address the concerns of citizens, Speaker Dr. Abdullah Aal Al-Sheikh has said. Addressing a forum organized by Okaz Arabic daily, Saudi Gazette's sister publication, at the organization's headquarters here Tuesday, Aal Al-Sheikh stressed the Council's keenness to react to all of society's issues. The Council, he said, was in the process of organizing an open meeting bringing together Council officials and members of the general public. He added that the Council has been very active in the past as it has issued more than 830 pieces of legislation aimed at improving the life of citizens. The Council has also tackled several national issues including unemployment, housing, and food and water security. Apart from this, it has formed committees to study the menace of terrorism, inflation and stock market problems, he said. The Council, he said, enjoys a lot of freedom in its functioning. New amendments in the Council's basic structure would allow even more freedom to the consultative body, he added. On the Shoura's relations with regional councils, he said a work mechanism exists between the two to highlight and focus on the needs of each region. Aal Al-Sheikh concluded by emphasizing that regional needs are identified and then referred to different ministries in reports outlining the Council's recommendations. Dr. Muhammad Al-Quwahis, a Shoura member, acknowledged that some of the Council's decisions were not executed. “We are sorry about this but our role is limited to sending recommendations through different channels including the Experts Commission at the Council of Ministers and the Council of Ministers Committee. Often it takes time and requires financial allocations to carry out our proposals. This explains the reasons behind the delay in implementing decisions,” he said. __
