Cabinet approves draft law on Shura Council''s electoral system

(MENAFN - The Peninsula) Doha: The Prime Minister and Minister of Interior HE Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al-Thani chaired the Cabinet's regular meeting on Wednesday via videoconference. The cabinet approved a draft law on the Shura Council's electoral system, and referred it to the Shura Council. Preparing the draft law comes in the framework of completing the state's constitutional requirements to elect Shura Council members, in implementation of the directives of the Amir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani on holding Shura elections in October, during the speech His Highness gave at the Opening of the 49th Shura Council Session on November 3 of 2020. The draft law was prepared under the supervision of the higher committee preparing for the Shura Council elections, chaired by HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior in line with Amiri decision no. 47 of 2019 establishing the committee and defining its powers. The provisions of the draft law came in line with the State of Qatar's permanent constitution, with an electoral system law set to be released that will determine the conditions and requirements to run for the elections. The draft law includes provisions related to the following: - The conditions candidates must satisfy to be able to run, based on the constitution and legal rules of constitutional nature. - Allowing government employees to nominate themselves for membership in the Shura Council while preserving their jobs and promotions throughout their membership, as well as permitting members of all military agencies, both military and civilians, to vote, in order to expand the base of participation. - Facilitating the process of registering in the voters' lists, including the possibility of applying for registration electronically. - Regulating the process of complaints against registration in voters' lists and judicial appeals against decisions of the committees of voters and candidates - Setting controls regarding electoral advertising, including setting a maximum of QR 2 million for the candidate's spending limit on electoral advertising, with oversight over these spending and its sources of financing. - To oblige the competent municipalities to ensure equal access of candidates to places where advertisements or electoral statements are placed, and to allocate equal spaces for the candidates. - Setting obligations for candidates when conducting election campaigning, including respecting the provisions of the constitution, maintaining national unity and maintaining the security of society, avoiding any rhetoric that is tribal or sectarian tendency, or what conflicts with public morals, prevailing traditions, or the religious and social values of society or offending the other candidate or others, or stirring up tribal or sectarian strife among citizens in any way. - Ensuring public and private media are impartial in their coverage and treatment of all candidates, and when covering the elections. - Banning the candidacy of ministers, members of the judiciary, and members of all military agencies from among the military, and members of the Central Municipal Council. - Allow everyone with an interest to challenge candidates' nominations. - Ensuring judicial supervision of elections, through a committee to supervise the voting and counting process, and announce the results, headed by a judge chosen by the Supreme Judicial Council. - Ensuring the right of candidates and their agents to follow the electoral process, attend the counting process, and announce the result. - Assigning the ruling regarding the merit of challenges to the validity of the election to the Court of Cassation. - Establishing severe penalties for electoral offenses, especially if one of the candidates receives support from a foreign person or a foreign entity. - Putting in place heavy penalties to guarantee freedom of voting and combating vote buying or compromising the integrity of the elections.MENAFN19052021000063011010ID1102100569