King orders SR 6.6 m reward for GAB officials

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has commended the efforts of the General Auditing Bureau in saving SR 787 million for the national coffers and has ordered a financial reward of SR 6.6 million to its 250 workers.
Osama bin Jaafar Faqeeh, president of the bureau, said the king’s gesture would not only strengthen the bureau to carry out its mission but will also enhance the efficiency of government departments.
The bureau’s officials had discovered that some government departments had made payment without any right or without issuing any bills. The king issued his order for the payment of a financial reward on the basis of the bureau’s Article 26.
According to the law, the president will pay such rewards to bureau employees following approval from the prime minister for their efforts in retrieving or saving huge amounts for the public coffers.
Faqeeh thanked the king for approving the payment to bureau employees in order to encourage them to work hard to save national wealth and carry out their duties independently.
In December, the Shoura Council emphasized the need for allowing GAB to verify the accounts of commercial banks having at least 25 percent state shares.
Finance Committee Chairman Saad Marik said the majority of the house also agreed on the need to allow the bureau to check final state accounts with the Finance Ministry.
The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency put the total net earnings of the country’s 12 banks at SR 28.75 billion during the first 10 months of 2012, below the full year profits of SR 30.9 billion in 2011 but above the 2010 net income of about SR 26.1 billion.