Saeed Haider

Saudi Gazette

 

DAMMAM — The Saudi Ministry of Commerce has announced Tuesday the nomination of six members to the board of Asharqia (Eastern Province) Chamber of Commerce and Industry, according to an official at the chamber here.



The chamber has 18 members on its board out of which 12 are directly elected through secret ballot, while six are nominated by the Ministry of Commerce keeping in mind wide representation of trade and industry

Earlier, the businessmen in the Eastern Province have elected 12 members through a direct elections  held from March 9 to13. The five-day election process covered the entire Eastern Province including Dammam, Al-Khobar,  Qatif, Jubail, Naairiyyah etc. Among those elected through direct ballot included the outgoing president of the chamber, Abdul Rahman Al-Rashid, Abdul Rahman Al-Otaishan,  Abdul Mohsin Al-Farraj, Faisal Bubshait, Faisal Al-Quraishi,  Hassan Al-Zahrani, Mohammad Al-Dossary, Abdul Hatem Al-Ammar, Ghadran Al-Ghadran, Abdul Aziz Al-Othman, Rasheed Al-Rasheed and Bander Al-Jabri.



Among the six nominated members two are businesswomen,  Manahil Al-Hamadan and Samina Al-Suwaiygh, and four businessmen: Fahd Al-Thuniyyan, Naif Al-Qahtani, Najib Al-Sinali and Mohammed Al-Farraj.



The first meeting of the new board of directors will be held this coming Sunday. During the meeting it is expected that the new board will elect its new president and two vice presidents. A representative for the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry will also be elected during the session. The newly formed board will have a four-year term.



According to business sources the new members are likely to maintain status quo and re-elect the outgoing president Abdul Rahman Al-Rashid as new president. Al-Rashid has already completed two-terms as President. If elected, he will be the longest serving president of the Eastern Province Chamber after the late Sa’ad Al-Moajil.



The nominated members of the board were happy at their nomination and believed that the government has put a big responsibility on their shoulder.



Manahil Al-Hamdan thanked the government for the new position and hoped that she could come up to the expectations. Manahil has absolute clarity on her priorities. She said women empowerment was her top priority. I will work hard to open new areas in training for women including IT and other related sectors. Her focus will be on women career development and more representation in various sectors.



Naif Al-Qahtani, another nominated member also believed that a very heavy responsibility has been put on his shoulder. He said he will give his 100 percent to fulfill the expectations.