RIYADH – The Council of Ministers Monday approved the transferring of legal authority for investigation and public prosecution of criminal offenses from the Control and Investigation Board (CIB) to the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution (BIP). This will be effective after six months since the issuance of the Cabinet decision. The Cabinet, chaired by Crown Prince Salman Bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier and Minister of Defense, approved the measures after reviewing the minutes of the Supreme Committee for Administrative Organization. The powers of the subcommittees and agencies concerned with investigation and prosecution of crimes under the CIB will be handed over to the BIP within two years, said Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Abdulaziz Khoja in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the Cabinet session. The Control and Investigation Board would also cease to practice any activity relating to financial control. It would be transferred to the General Auditing Bureau. However, the duty of field auditing would be transferred from the Ministry of Civil Service to the Control and Investigation Bureau. The Cabinet also ordered that the ministry and the three bodies would complete their restructuring in accordance with the new measures within one year and present a report to the Supreme Committee for Administrative Organization. Dr. Khoja said the Cabinet approved the health minister's recommendation to regulate the functioning of Saudi Center for Organ Transplant, and asked it to prepare a draft comprehensive system regarding organ transplantation. It also approved the strategic plan to improve the performance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to the plan, the ministry must submit a biannual report to the Cabinet, including outcome, obstacles and suggestions regarding the implementation of the plan. Earlier, at the outset of the session, the Crown Prince thanked Allah Almighty for bestowing good health and recovery to King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, who recently underwent a successful back surgery. He also spoke about the King's prestigious status at Arab, Islamic and international arenas and his towering role in global affairs that made the king assume the latest ranking as the seventh most powerful world leader by the US Forbes Magazine. The Cabinet slammed the Israeli move to build 3000 new settlement units in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem. It urged the international community to halt these occupation projects that poised to derail the peace process and undermine the stability of the region. While reviewing the latest regional and international developments, Dr. Khoja said, the Cabinet welcomed the holding of the 8th Manama Dialogue Forum and highlighted the role of this annual forum in confronting the challenges facing the region. The session hoped that the outcome of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), held recently in Doha, would contribute in the implementation of the convention and its protocol as well as in laying the foundation for a better future to address climate change after 2020. The Cabinet also lauded the patronage of the Crown Prince to the 20th anniversary of Prince Salman Center for Disability Research. – SG/SPA
