FNC to discuss measures to fight Mers in UAE

ABU DHABI // The Ministry of Health’s plans to fight and prevent Mers and the deterioration of health services in the Northern Emirates are among the issues that will be discussed by the FNC on Tuesday.

In light of the number of cases of Mers in the country and the region, Rashid Al Shuraiqi sent a question to Minister of Health, Abdulrahman Al Owais, asking him about the measures the country is taking to prevent and fight the respiratory disease.

Dr Shaikha Al Irri has questioned the health minister about the quality of health care in the Northern Emirates. Her question said: “The hospitals located in the Northern Emirates are suffering from poor health services being provided to the patients staying there. So what is the ministry’s plan to improve the level of these services?”

She said many Emiratis have complained about services at these hospitals “that are under the Ministry of Health and they do not suit the vision of the country”.

A new condition of the Marriage Fund, that cancels a payout for citizens who are getting married if they earn over a certain amount, will also be discussed.

FNC member Mohammed Al Qubaisi will be discussing the issue with the chief executive of the fund, Dr Maitha Al Shamsi.

They will also discuss an executive order from 2012 that made it compulsory for women to be represented on the executive boards of all government authorities and companies in the country.

“So what are the measures that have been taken to activate this decision?” Ali Al Nuaimi has said in a question to Mohammed Abdullah Al Gargawi, the Minister of Cabinet Affairs.

The member said he wants to know how they can get more women involved in decision making.

Mr Al Qubaisi has also asked the Minister of Education, Humaid Mohammed Obaid Al Qatami, about the reasons behind the constant changes in private schools’ curriculums.

“The teachers and students in private education suffer from the continuous change ... what are the reasons behind these changes and why doesn’t the ministry set a unified guide for curriculums for all private schools to follow?” he said.

He added that he has specific questions that he needs to raise with the minister face-to-face to make sure that the ministry was fulfilling its role in monitoring private educational institutions and making sure they do not breech their commitments and guidelines.

Marwan bin Ghlaitha asked Mr Al Gargawi about the 2011–2013 strategic plans for ministries and federal authorities. “It included a number of projects and executive programmes. What were the results of evaluation reports conducted on the projects and programmes during those years?”

Dr Shikha Al Irri has asked about making Ishy Bilady the country’s national anthem. She said she had continually put this question to officials, without getting an answer.

Directing the question at Mr Al Gargawi, she asked: “Article 5 of the Constitution says the Union should have its own slogan and national anthem. So why has no national anthem been officially confirmed until now?”