18/3/2011
During a visit to the Department of Lands and Survey (DLS), Dr. Al Bakhit said : Administrative reform means justice in the salaries of staff. Al Arab al Yawm / Friday 18.03.2011 Prime Minister Dr. Ma'rouf Al Bakhit assured that the government - commissioned by His Majesty King Abdullah II - is working rapidly to take effective and concrete measures in the areas of political and economic reform, and with the same seriousness in the field of administrative reform. The Prime Minister said in a meeting with the Director General of the Department and senior staff, and in the presence of Minister of Finance Dr. Mohammad Abu Hammour, that the importance of administrative reform is not limited for merging similar institutions in work and canceling the unnecessary ones, but also for creating a situation of justice in salaries and bonuses, incentives, and recognizing the value of work of all staff. Dr. Bakhit said that the government will achieve, in the twenty-third of April, a comprehensive study on the restructuring of the salaries of employees in public sector institutions to ensure justice and equality, pointing out that the Government will begin work seriously to address all the imbalances and disparities in salaries. He also expressed the government's appreciation for the great efforts made by staff of the Department of Lands and Survey and their role in preserving the property rights of Jordanians, pointing out that his visit to DLS is the first one to a governmental institution since the formation of the government,and it comes as recognition for these efforts. Insuring that the government's support to improve conditions of employees in the department, he said : "In addition to your religious, moral and value system in dealing with issues and funds, it is necessary to have a decent life commiserating with this type of work." Dr. Bakhit said that the government will rapidly reduce the number of legislations governing the work of the department which reached 19 laws and 11 bylaws, so as to contribute in alleviating the pressure on staff , through adopting a set of laws and regulations governing the work of the department and giving it a priority, particularly the law of real property ownership. From his side, the minister of finance Dr. Mohammad Abu Hammour pointed out that the 19 laws have been reduced to 3 laws, currently under approval, to be reduced further to only one law. He displayed the set of actions that have been taken to reactivate the housing and real estate market in the Kingdom, and to overcome the difficulties facing this sector, pointing out to the necessity of reconsidering the valuation issues that the Department is suffering from. The Director General of DLS, Engineer Nidal Alsagarat assured that the department is the memory of Jordan, and a witness to its development and progress by the documents and records dating back to the Ottoman period, and is considered to be property ownership rights preserver. He also noted that the department has experienced significant development in the work of registration, surveying and computerizing, which was reflected on the services provided to citizens. Alsagarat assured also that the land registration system in place in Jordan is one of the best, comparied to the countries of the region, whether in the area of installing property rights or the procedures and the high level of public confidence, and the mechanisms of work and technical performance, as reflected in the technical & registering services provided to ctizens. The Prime Minister listened to a briefing on the achievements and developments of DLS and future ambitions and challenges facing their work, and he heard to the demands and needs of its staff and their suggestions related to developing work and improving the service provided to citizens.