Board of House of Representatives Holds Weekly Meeting on Tuesday, December 1st, 2020

The Board of the House of Representatives held on Tuesday, December 1^st, 2020, its weekly meeting under the chairmanship of Speaker of the House of Representatives Habib El Malki. The meeting discussed parliamentary control, legislative action, relations to some constitutional institutions, as well as some administrative matters.

At the start of the meeting, the Board deliberated on the topic of the monthly sitting held by the House on Monday, November 30^th, devoted to "development programs in the southern provinces: reality and prospects." Thus, the House’s Speaker and the Board members highlighted the importance of this constitutional step and the topic of this sitting. In this context, the Board noted the accuracy and thoroughness of the data presented regarding the conducted development programs launched by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God preserve him; programs that have achieved global development at several economic, social, and environmental levels.

On weekly control, the Board has decided to reset the agenda of the plenary sitting of Monday, December 7^th, by including the departments of equipment, transportation, logistics, and water; and of national education, vocational training, higher education, and scientific research.

Regarding exploratory missions, the Board reviewed and approved the latest version of the Rules of Procedure on the organization of the works of the said missions, which includes provisions that standardize the organizational framework, streamline procedures and measures, and define exploratory missions, their scope of action, and the nature of their activities.

The Speaker and the Board members stressed the importance of this pilot framework for this prominent aspect of the House’s control action.

As regards legislation, the Board of the House has scheduled a plenary sitting for Tuesday, December 8^th, at 4:00 p.m., which will be devoted to the examination and vote on finalized legal texts.

The Board also reviewed and referred to the Finance and Economic Development Committee two parliamentary bills on the regulation of hydrocarbon prices and the transfer of the assets of Moroccan Oil Refinery Company (SAMIR) to the State account.

As for the agenda of the Standing Committees, the Board reviewed their agenda, noting the importance of the activities they held at the beginning of the week at the legislative level, namely the examination of the Government bill on trust services for electronic transactions within the Foreign Affairs, National Defense, Islamic Affairs and Moroccan Expatriates Committee, and the examination of the Government bill on combatting money laundering by the Justice, Legislation, and Human Rights Committee.

The Board also noted the importance of the committees' activities concerning the assignment of tasks to the members of exploratory missions within the Social Sectors Committee; the Education, Culture, and Communication Committee; the Foreign Affairs, National Defense, Islamic Affairs, and Moroccan Expatriates Committee; and the Infrastructure Committee. In this respect, the Board reiterated the importance of the issues to be addressed by these missions, such as the situation of women and children in areas of tension in Syria and Iraq, social protection institutions, the Administration of Pharmacies and Medicines, some hospitals, some procurement contracts concluded by the Ministry of Health amidst COVID-19, and the situation of the Office for Vocational Training and Employment Promotion (OFPPT) and the National Office for Electricity and Potable Water (ONEE).

Concerning the House's relation to some constitutional institutions, the Board examined the demand for requesting the opinion of the Economic, Social, and Environmental Council on the evaluation of the effectiveness of the performance of Autonomously Managed Government Services and has decided to approve it.

Concerning the draft Rules of Procedure on the creation of the "National Prize for Studies and Research on Parliamentary Action," which includes provisions laying out the application requirements and procedure, the jury, and various provisions setting out additional competences, the Board members commended the content of the draft and have decided to discuss it during a future meeting to take the final decision on it.