The government has on Sunday submitted amendments proposed several important laws, to the People’s Majlis.

Amendments were proposed to the Presidential Elections Act and the Privileges and Protections for Former Presidents Act. Amendments were also proposed to the law on Independent Institutions and their management.

The President’s Office revealed that amendments were forwarded in line with the government’s pledge to review the legislation to remove any provisions which were crafted to punish a particular person, or for the benefit of a specific person.

According to the amendment proposed to the Presidential Elections Act, the barring of contestants from running will be eliminated, should they seek protection from a foreign government or have attained foreign citizenship within less than a period of 10 years before having given up asylum or foreign citizenship.

Further, the government is also seeking to amend the Privileges and Provisions for Former Presidents Act. The amendment seeks to strip "a former President or the First Spouse of their privileges and protections should they have been convicted of a crime committed during the respective President's official term." It notes that "this provision cannot be applied retroactively and applies to Presidents who are convicted of a criminal offence only after this legislation was enacted."

The amendments made to the law regarding Independent Institutions and their employment regulations pertains to the Prosecutor General’s Act, the Audit Act, the Civil Service Act, the Anti-Corruption Commission Act, the Elections Commission Act as well as the Human Rights Commission Act.

Amendments will ensure that said institutions and all their employees perform their constitutionally mandated duties fairly and efficiently, “free of undue influence”, revealed the President’s Office. Also, these amendments aim to make sure employees do not take undue advantage of their position and abuse their power at another’s expense.

Said amendments in question propose to add more security and protect the institutions from corruption which includes mandating all employees to publish asset declaration for themselves and their families. If enacted, independent institutions will be banned from conducting businesses with a potential conflict of interest and to set out clear ethical guidelines that employees will be mandated to abide by.

Once enacted, commissioners at the institutions will be required to proactively engage with the parliament to provide progress reports of their institutions. They may be presented to the Parliament and its relevant committee if needed.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's government is to submit over 200 amendments to parliament during his presidency, which are to fanned out through the five years.