JEDDAH: Minister of Commerce and Industry Abdullah Zainal Alireza is expected to endorse Tuesday or Wednesday the results of the elections for the 20th board of directors of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), said sources at the JCCI.
The elections were conducted on Oct. 17-21. Alireza is also expected to announce the names of the six Ministry of Commerce and Industry appointed board members.
Mustapha Sabri, secretary-general of the JCCI, said that if the minister does not endorse the results and announce the six members Tuesday or Wednesday then this would be done after Haj.
The board consists of 18 members of whom 12 are elected by members of the JCCI; the remaining six members are appointed by the ministry.
According to JCCI regulations, candidates have a week after the elections to register objections with the minister of commerce and industry who will consider them.
“The unprecedented delay of 26 days…was caused by the number of objections submitted…by the 17 losing candidates,” said Sabri.
A total of 63 candidates contested the elections. He added that the minister of commerce and industry usually announces the six members and endorses the results within the two weeks after complaints are registered.
“However, there is no cut off date for the minister to do this,” he added.
Meanwhile, Nasser Al-Farhan, a losing candidate who has disputed the results, has threatened to file a lawsuit against the Ministry of Commerce and Industry at the Court of Grievances if objections are not properly dealt with.
Ali Hassan Nagoor, who has joined hands with Al-Farhan, has objected against the way votes have been counted and has asked the minister of commerce and industry for a recount using the manual method of counting rather than the computer system, which was done for the first time during these elections.
The JCCI, with more than 42,000 members, is the single largest chamber in the Arab Gulf region. It controls more than 40 percent of trade activity in the Kingdom.
“It is not just normal that the results of the elections of a chamber of this magnitude is taking such a long time to be endorsed,” said a source.
