Manama: A Saudi member of the Shura Council was elected the new Speaker of the Arab Parliament.
Mishael Bin Faham Al Sulami, who headed the Shura Council’s Committee on Education and Scientific Research, won 53 votes his rival Sudanese MP Samoa Hassan Sayyed Ahmad got 13 votes at the elections held on Saturday at the Arab League headquarters in the Egyptian capital Cairo.
Al Sulami, whose term will be two years, replaces Ahmad Bin Mohammad Al Jarwan who served for two terms as Speaker of the Arab Parliament.
In his first statement, Al Sulami said that he would build on the achievements accomplished by his predecessors and that he would work on turning the Arab Parliament into a forum to debate issues of great interest to the Arab people from a parliamentarian perspective and within a spirit that reflects the keenness of the member states on the interest and gains of the Arab nation.
“The Arab nation, in spite of all the dangers lurking around it, draws on its extraordinarily rich and deep-rooted heritage to affirm that it can confront challenges overcome conspiracies and surmounts obstacles, always looking forward towards new successes,” he said.
The Speaker told the Saudi Press Agency that he would deploy efforts to help fulfill the aspirations of the member states while keeping abreast with the political, economic, social and cultural developments, in cooperation with the Arab League.
Bahraini MP Adel Al Assoumi, Libyan Abu Salah Shalabi and Omani Musallam Al Maashani were named deputies of the new Speaker.
