JEDDAH, 13 March 2005 — Prince Mansour ibn Miteb, chief election officer, will meet with prominent Jeddah residents today in an open forum that will cover all aspects of the ongoing municipal elections.
The open dialogue will be held at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry (JCCI) this evening. Acting JCCI Chairman Dr. Ghassan Al-Sulaiman emphasized the chamber’s continued interest in ensuring a large participation in the April 21 municipal polls in Jeddah.
The forum comes three days before voter registration ends in the city, amid reports of unexpectedly low turnout. The numbers are lower than anticipated in a city which has a history of voting even in small household matters, said Dr. Al-Sulaiman. He admitted that available figures do not look very rosy to set Jeddah apart from other Saudi cities.
Muhammad Al-Sharif of the chamber said: “JCCI expects that the open forum with Prince Mansour will cover all aspects of elections.”
Elections to the Jeddah Municipal Council is considered special for the city because it had participated in the first 1945 National Council poll during the era of King Abdul Aziz. It was also the last city to scrap its municipal council amid administrative contradictions between the council and Jeddah Municipality in the early 1980s.
