Muscat, November 17 (ONA) - The Sultanate will celebrate tomorrow, Wednesday, the eighteenth of November, the fiftieth anniversary of its blessed renaissance, and its loyal people continue with determination and dedication to make more achievements under the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, who undertook to continue the process of building and progress at the level of Omani people and the homeland in an ambitious renewed renaissance that encompasses all aspects of life.
This precious national memory comes this year, and Omanis remember the deceased, the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said bin Taimur, who founded a modern state that continues its noticeable presence in various fields.
Despite the great affliction that aggrieved the homeland and the Arab and Islamic nations following the departure of Sultan Qaboos bin Said bin Taimur, the eleventh of January of the current year 2020 was a timeless day in Oman in which the Omanis wrote a national epic of loyalty and trustworthiness, as the Sultanate witnessed a smooth transition of power when the Royal Family Council decided to express gratitude and appreciation to the late Sultan, and with firm conviction, to affirm that whom he referred to for the mandate of power, believing in his usual wisdom and broad outlook.
In fulfilment of this desire, the Defence Council commissioned the opening of the letter in which he indicated the confirmation of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariqas the sultan of the country "because of the qualities and abilities that qualify him to carry this trust."
Omanis bid farewell to the dearest man and mourn him with invocation, supplication, and gratitude, reviewing his great achievements and immortal feats, after a long journey of construction and giving that lasted for more than 49 years in which the Omani person was the focus and basis of development.
His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, during the first ten months since assuming the reins of power in the country, was able to make many achievements with a solid will and relentless determination in various fields that culminated in restructuring the state’s administrative apparatus to keep pace with Oman Vision 2040. All sectors of society participated in drawing its features in a way that meets the aspirations of His Majesty, as the participants contributed to defining its future economic, social and cultural orientations and goals for a more prosperous and developing future.
The Royal Decree No. 75/2020 on the state’s administrative apparatus constituted a new shift in the practice and organization of administrative work in the Sultanate, as it would contribute to simplifying procedures and benefiting from the services provided and completing them faster, in line with the directions of “Oman Vision 2040”, which is considered a priority for the development of sustainable governorates and cities and as a strategic direction through adopting a decentralized approach stipulated in Article Two, which states that "the administrative apparatus consists of central units such as ministries, agencies, councils and the like, and decentralized units such as public bodies and institutions and the like."
Royal Decree No. 101/2020 related to the governorate system and municipal affairs will contribute to a balanced development among the governorates, better investing resources, making use of the tourism and heritage assets, and providing the services required for each governorate, in addition to managing the municipality’s facilities. the Governorates Affairs Council will work to coordinate between the governorates in exercising their competencies and following up on development projects in addition to evaluating their performance, estimating budgets and monitoring the investment of their resources.
On the other hand, the meeting of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq with a number of sheikhs of the wilayats of Dhofar Governorate in the Wilayat of Salalah last September represented a deepening of the constant contact between the leader and the people of the homeland and a continuation of the late Sultan’s school and an indication of His Majesty's constant keenness to meet with citizens to closely examine their needs and the requirements of their wilayats, and listen to their observations and suggestions regarding development services and their development, and to enhance the role of government agencies in delivering them to the various parts of the country within the framework of comprehensive and sustainable development plans.
Despite the role played by the “Oman Council” in its two chambers, the state and the shura, on the legislative side, in addition to the role of municipal councils on the developmental side, these meetings represent the practical practice of the Omani shura and are an original theme derived from Omani customs and traditions.
On the other hand, the Sultanate’s government’s interest in the health of the Omani citizen was evident since the early days of the blessed renaissance through the establishment of health centres and specialized hospitals and the development of medical staff in all medical fields. This interest was also evidenced by the directives of His Majesty the Sultan to address the crisis of the spread of the novel Corona virus "Covid 19" that began since late last year 2019 in most countries of the world through his order to form a higher committee to discuss the mechanism of dealing with this virus, the developments resulting from its spread, and the efforts made regionally and globally to address it, follow up the measures taken in this regard, and develop appropriate solutions, proposals and recommendations based on the results of the general health evaluation.
This committee headed by Sayyid Hammoud bin Faisal Al Busaidi, Minister of Interior, which is preparing in a permanent session, has worked to implement the directives that His Majesty the Sultan affirmed during his presidency of the committee meeting last March of this year, which is that the Sultanate’s government will “harness all its capabilities and will spare no effort to confront this pandemic and limit its spread in order to preserve the health of citizens and residents alike.”
In support of these efforts, the "Endowment Fund to Support Health Services" and the "Special Fund to Support the Efforts of the Ministry of Health to Combat Covid-19 " were established. As part of his personal support to combat this pandemic, His Majesty donated ten million Omani riyals to the fund dedicated to this pandemic, which confirms the concerted efforts between the leader, the government, the people of the homeland and the residents to end this pandemic.
The Supreme Committee in charge of discussing the mechanism of dealing with developments resulting from the spread of the Coronavirus "Covid 19" has also taken many measures to limit the spread of this virus, including the intensification of awareness-raising campaigns, the definition of precautionary measures, and the partial and total closure of some governorates through control points, banning movement during the evening period, the closure of mosques, the suspension of schools, colleges and universities, the reduction of the percentage of employees at the workplace of the two sectors, the activation of "remote work", in addition to the closure of a number of commercial activities and the imposition of laws and regulations that ensure compliance with measures that prevent the spread of the pandemic.
In view of the economic effects of this pandemic that have cast their shadows on various countries of the world, His Majesty the Sultan may ordered the formation of a committee emanating from the Supreme Committee in charge of examining the mechanism for dealing with developments resulting from the spread of the Coronavirus, Covid 19, which will handle the economic effects resulting from it at the local level. A series of decisions were represented in packages and facilities provided by the government to private sector institutions and companies, in addition to the emergency loans program to help some of the most affected groups of entrepreneurs.
It is not surprising that when the memory of the eighteenth of the glorious November of each year comes, it is necessary to address the pivotal and prominent role played by the Sultan’s armed forces with their various weapons and learn about the epic of development and modernization that these forces enjoyed during the fifty years of the blessed renaissance process by the wise leadership.
The anniversary of the 18th of the glorious November of each year is one of the most important national memories firmly established in the modern history of Oman because of its profound connotations that clearly indicate the civilizational transformation that the Sultanate has witnessed since the launch of the blessed renaissance that was established by the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said bin Taimur and to continue with determination and confidence in the march of development and modernization under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq.
The 50th anniversary of the blessed renaissance rises as a living pulse in the hearts of the brave men of the Sultan's Armed Forces towards achieving sincerer work, generosity and dedication for the sake of the advancement of this dear homeland.
The Sultan's Armed Forces have received special attention from the wise leadership, and they keep pace with all stages of development and progress to carry out their noble duties in carrying the secretariat of defence of the homeland, protecting its life on land, air and sea, guarding its gains and protecting the achievements of its blessed renaissance.
The Sultan's Armed Forces are one of the great witnesses to the achievements of the modern renaissance that was established by the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said bin Taimur and his approach was illustrated by His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, the Supreme Commander, who emphasized his care and interest in them in his speech on 23 February of this year 2020, which reads "We would like to record with pride a word of praise and gratitude to all workers in our valiant armed forces in the military and security sectors, who are responsible for protecting this dear nation, defending its livelihood and defending its gains, stressing our care to them and our concern about them, so that these sectors remain the fortified fortress, and the solid shield that protects every inch of the soil of the dear nation, from end to end.