ABU DHABI // The Minister of State for FNC Affairs has urged members to make greater use of their power to summon Cabinet members for questioning.
In response to questions today, Dr Anwar Gargash noted that not once in his four years in the post had a member asked a minister about progress on the council's previous recommendations.
"What happens to recommendations depends on what they are," Dr Gargash said. "Each one has a different procedure."
Rashed Al Shuraiqi (Ras Al Khaimah) called for a "clear and specific" mechanism to put recommendations into practice.
"The Cabinet should provide a specific timeline," Mr Al Shuraiqi said.
"Some recommendations have been under discussion for a long time without real actions. We want to see results."
Dr Gargash insisted Cabinet took FNC recommendations seriously. It had responded to 24 of the 30 recommendations made by the previous council, which he described as "reasonable and good".
"Some are more detailed and require changing the country's strategies, which takes time," he said.
Ahmed Al Shamsi (Ajman) also called for clearer procedures and deadlines.
"There should be a medium for ministries to notify the FNC about their timeline and the number of hours the ministries spend working on them," Mr Al Shamsi said.
His call was echoed by Hamad Al Rahoumi (Dubai).
Dr Abdulrahim Al Shahin (RAK) said the Cabinet should also be required to give reasons for rejecting recommendations, as required by the constitution.
Some issues languished on the Cabinet agenda for years without being dealt with, Dr Al Shahin said.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
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