LONDON, 14 March 2004 — Saudi Arabia yesterday threatened to withdraw from the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce & Industry if its candidate Mustafa Al-Hujailan is not elected secretary-general.
Dr. Fahd Al-Sultan, secretary-general of the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce & Industry, said Al-Hujailan, who was business director for Prince Alwaleed ibn Talal for more than 15 years, has the strong backing of the Saudi government.
“We want him to get elected and we won’t back down,” Dr. Al-Sultan told Arab News. He also warned Riyadh could establish an independent chamber if Al-Hujailan was not elected to the post.
Saudi Arabia contributes 48 percent of the chamber’s budget and no Saudi has been elected to the post since the chamber was formed in 1976. “The Kingdom’s big contribution to the chamber as well as the qualifications of Al-Hujailan are enough to get him elected,” he said.
Elections to the post will be held today in the Syrian capital Damascus. Saudi Arabia’s Saleh Al-Tayyar is also contesting to become the secretary-general of Arab-French Chamber with candidates from Tunisia and Lebanon.
Al-Hujailan’s prospects are good, however, especially after the withdrawal of Basil Al-Ghalayini, another Saudi candidate, for business reasons.
Other candidates for the Arab-British Chamber post are: Jassim Al-Shatti of Bahrain, Ghaith Aramnazi of Syria, Fathi Shatwan of Libya, Kamaluddin Sanada of Sudan, Alauddin Hussein of Iraq and Muhammad Al-Samadi of Jordan.
Al-Hujailan worked for Kingdom Holding from 1988 to 2001. If elected he would replace Abdul Kareem Al-Mudarres, who has held the post for more than 20 years.
Al-Hujailan has said that he would work to strengthen the chamber, in particular reducing expenditure to offset its deficit.
