DAMMAM, 27 April — Interior Minister Prince Naif said issuing driving license to women is totally out of question. Prince Naif made this statement in reply to a question by the Arab News reporter about the possibility of any study being conducted by the appropriate authorities on women’s driving, soon after the prince attended a graduation ceremony at the Dhahran Private Schools on Wednesday.
Answering a question on the time when women’s civil status cards will be issued, Prince Naif said “We leave every thing to its appropriate time.”
The ministry will shortly set up new jails which will guarantee better services to inmates, Prince Naif said.
The prince also explained that the Manpower Fund had been set up with the objective of helping employment-oriented training programs. It is not responsible, however, for financing youth projects. The minister also said that the implementation of magnetic or bar-coded passports required a little more time.
Regarding the issue of many Saudi students being refused entry to universities, the interior minister said that universities in the Kingdom have limited capacities and that might be one of the reasons for admission denial. He also emphasized that many disciplines, especially related to science, required higher grades for admission. He said students not getting admission in universities should also look for other options like vocational training, or approach other institutes.
On a question about the spread of the criminal tendency to employ violators of Iqama (residence permit) and labor regulations despite measures from the authorities against it, the prince explained, “it is tragic that a party in cover-up operations is a citizen who is not aware that he and his country stand to lose from the act and the beneficiary is a non-Saudi. Of course, the efforts are continuing and will be stepped up because the practice should be stopped.”
The prince denied that the recently-signed Saudi security agreement with Iran had anything to do with Gulf countries, particularly, the United Arab Emirates and the island issue.
With regard to the issues related to the transfer of female teachers, the minister said it was a matter being addressed by the Presidency of Girls’ Education in conjunction with the Ministry of Civil Service. “It is a disturbing social problem that would be resolved,” the prince added.
