MEMBERS of the Northern Municipal Council yesterday told a minister that they would consider ‘authoritative actions’ if he did not agree to meet them within a fortnight.
The warning came after several councillors accused Works Minister Ibrahim Al Hawaj and his ministry of repeatedly ignoring requests, failing to respond to correspondence and preventing them from communicating with key ministry directors.
Council chairman Dr Sayed Shubbar Al Wedaie said the council would make one last attempt to secure a meeting.
“We will give the minister one last time. If nothing substantial happens, then the council will explore the authoritative measures available to us,” he said.
Councillor Abdulla Ashoor accused the ministry of adopting a ‘closed-door approach’.
“We are not allowed to meet ministry directors,” he said.
“We end up airing our complaints on social media, and the next day the minister asks, ‘Why didn’t you contact me?’ How can we contact him when the door is shut from the start?”
He added that matters only get resolved after public pressure, which should not be the case.
“We represent the people and we deserve basic co-operation,” said Mr Ashoor. “If executives continue shutting the door, we will escalate.”
The council’s technical committee chairman Jassim Hajris criticised what he described as bureaucratic delay and disregard for elected representatives.
“We submit requests and they spend two years under ‘study’ – and in the end, they are rejected.”
Another councillor, Abdulla Al Qobaisi, expressed frustration at what he described as the absence of tangible achievements.
“The Northern Governorate has entered the Bermuda Triangle and disappeared. Everything comes in drops – and with difficulty.”
He added that securing progress often required personal connections rather than official channels.
“You need a relationship with an MP or direct contact with the minister,” said Mr Al Qobaisi.
“You call the minister and he’s still asleep at 4pm. You have to go through your MP, and only then does the message for a meeting finally go through.”
Councillor Bassem Abu Idrees criticised the ministry for sending junior employees to meetings concerning key municipal projects.
“During the projects meeting, only junior staff attended – people we could not properly engage with on major issues,” he said.
He said their frustrations stem from repeated attempts to engage the ministry on infrastructure issues – including roads, maintenance and public works – without receiving meaningful co-operation.
The councillors argued that the inability to meet decision-makers directly undermines their work and delays essential municipal services for residents.
Dr Al Wedaie said the council remained committed to dialogue but will not accept prolonged silence from the ministry.
“We will seek a meeting with the minister within two weeks. If the meeting does not happen, or if nothing meaningful comes out of it, then the council will consider stronger actions,” he said, without specifying what those actions might be.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
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