It referred to media reporting about the alleged depth of corruption that contributed to the catastrophic floods in Jeddah in January.
“Many reports appearing in the media about allegations made by the Prosecution and Investigations Commission (PIC) concerning suspects involved in the failure of flood control projects in Jeddah are not only incorrect but also damage their rights,” said an NSHR statement on Saturday.
The NSHR urged the media not to jump to conclusions and avoid reporting allegations that are currently being examined by legal authorities.
“The NSHR is monitoring the conditions of the suspects under interrogation. It has not found any situation that has warranted its intervention. The investigations and legal examinations are being carried out within the limits of the law,” the statement said, adding that the NSHR has not received any complaint from the suspects or their relatives about PIC investigations.
Meanwhile, two former mayors of Jeddah will testify in the trial of another former mayor who reportedly admitted his role in irregularities that contributed to a large-scale disaster during the floods in Jeddah in 2009.
The ex-mayor will face trial on charges of amassing wealth by taking advantage of his official position, causing the loss of many lives and violating regulations governing ministers, deputy ministers and high-ranking officials.
According to some local media, the ex-mayor said in his confessional statement that he was wrong to endorse the documents submitted to him by his undersecretary to construct a concrete tunnel that disrupted a natural flood route in Quwaiza and also permitted citizens to construct buildings in the flood basin.
He also admitted in the statement, which will be added to the trial documents, that he was ignorant of many regulations and orders regarding construction near flood course basins. He said he learned about a royal decree issued in 2003 banning construction in flood courses and basins only during interrogations.
He accused his undersecretary of misleading him with false information for reasons he did not know.
Early last year, Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal submitted to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah a report on preliminary investigations into the flood that involved the questioning of scores of current and former city officials, contractors and businessmen, focusing on why Jeddah's infrastructure failed to drain the water as it should have done.
It also focused on why land set aside for drainage purposes around the city had been developed with commercial and residential buildings, often with ostensibly legal land ownership documents.
However, charges against many businessmen involved in the Jeddah disaster will be dropped due to lack of evidence, according to an official source.
