PM: Gov’t entities to be penalized for failing to uphold health safety protocols
Alshaheen News
Prime Minister Omar Razzaz on Tuesday instructed the competent authorities to enforce the penalties set forth in the defense orders against public entities and agencies which failed to ensure adherence to health safety measures.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Kingdom in early March, the government has issued several defense orders under the 1993 Defense Law, some of which entailed penalties against individuals and entities, whether private or public that do not abide by disease prevention and health safety protocols.
Accordingly, the prime minister ordered surprise visits to government agencies to check staff’s and service recipients’ commitment to the set protocols, including the use of face masks, social distancing, the use of contact-tracing app Aman, and temperature check-ins.
The visits revealed “outright” violations in nine departments and institutions, which were reported to the prime minister who ordered an immediate enforcement of penalties set forth in the relevant defense orders.
Furthermore, Razzaz ordered the Audit Bureau, internal control units, and the “Mystery Shopper” program to conduct surprise visits and carry out continuous inspection campaigns in all government institutions and departments to verify the extent of compliance.
The prime minister said these inspection campaigns will continue and they will not be limited to Amman-based entities but will all include all governorates to ensure the highest degrees of compliance with safety protocols.
