Bahkali, supervisor of the National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) in Jizan Region, has disclosed that there are more than 3,000 cases pending with the human rights watchdog. Attempts are on to find an early resolution of all the pending cases, he said. Some cases require prompt attention because difficult situations have created serious hardships, he noted. “There are cases that are sensitive and related to families,” Dr. Al-Bahkali said. “We are concerned and worry that they could get worse. Other cases are delayed due to the long procedures we are facing with some authorities, whose directives and procedures we respect, but they affect the aggrieved parties.” Dr. Al-Bahkali attributed some of the delays to procrastination and foot-dragging by some government authorities involved in the cases. The matter requires close monitoring and continuous pressure on these authorities, he believes. He gave the example of a case involving the Jizan Passports Department that has not been addressed in seven months. He demanded that authorities concerned cooperate with the society by speeding up their work on matters it brings to their attention. Dr. Muflih Al-Qahtani, Chairman of the NSHR, said the group has noticed delays in completing paperwork by several government authorities and ministries, which is detrimental to people's interests and leading to the loss of their rights. The NSHR has become aware of this through its field tours, complaints it receives and its daily observations, he added. Dr. Al-Qahtani attributed these problems to the inefficiency of some employees, matters not being referred to other authorities, a lack of coordination with relevant authorities, final decisions not being issued and demands by citizens and expatriates. He said some cases take a long time to resolve and that there can be overlapping powers among authorities and ministries. Despite attempts by leading officials in ministries to urge their administrations to speed up paperwork and transactions, “we are still observing delays in completing some of the paperwork and some employees delay and hinder transactions, due to complaints some people have made,” Dr. Al-Qahtani said. Employees who are ignoring the Royal Order to speed up paperwork and quickly decide cases and issues should be held accountable, he said. He stressed that monitoring transactions, from the date they enter the authority or administration until the paperwork is completed, and punishing employees who cause any delays would speed up resolution of the cases. Dr. Al-Qahtani pointed out that the society is monitoring, following up, corresponding and coordinating with leading officials to speed up completion of paperwork procedures. He agreed that some government administrations and public authorities are slow to resolve cases and noted that the NSHR has received complaints about several judicial authorities. The situation would improve, he said, if there is internal monitoring of performance and the pace of completing paperwork, along with monitoring employees who are proved to have been involved in delaying transactions.
