Don’t mention the crisis. Yet

Don’t mention the crisis. Yet

The UAE government has asked the Federal National Council to postpone discussing the financial crisis.

April 21, 2009 11:47 by Aarti Nagraj

The UAE Cabinet told the Federal National Council (FNC) on Tuesday to delay discussing the global financial crisis until after the government completes measures to cope with it, reports Gulf News.

The FNC reportedly rejected the move, saying that there should be a good reason for postponing the discussion of an important public issue.

“Should the House be denied the right to discuss such an important issue, so what are these issues which the legislature will be allowed to discuss? The House was denied the right to discuss the national identity and now the Cabinet demands that discussion of the financial crunch be delayed. Until when should we delay the discussion of this extremely vital issue? Is it until the crisis is over? We at the FNC have to enjoy full freedom to discuss these national issues,” Sultan Saqr Al Suwaidi, a FNC member from Dubai, told the paper.

“The government has only the right to accept or reject a request submitted by the FNC and must give a valid reason for turning down any such request, according to the constitution,” said Yousuf Al Nuaimi, another FNC member.

There have already been talks about some differences between the FNC and the UAE Cabinet. During the recent e–media session with Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, one of the journalists asked about any issues between the UAE government and the House. Sheikh Mohammed played down the rumors in his response.