Management by Administration of House of Representatives of Exceptional Situation Relative to Coronavirus

Some media circulated inaccurate and erroneous information regarding the management by the administration of the House of Representatives of the exceptional situation caused by the propagation of COVID-19. To inform the public opinion, the House’s administration provides the following clarifications:

- On instructions from the Speaker of the House of Representatives and in coordination with all the organs and bodies of the House, the administration of the House of Representatives drew up an action plan at the beginning of the pandemic, which laid down the necessary procedures and measures and the appropriate means, and set up a committee to monitor its implementation, chaired the General-Secretary of the House,

- Six administrative notes were issued, calling for compliance with individual preventive measures and government directives, and dealing with the organization of work to ensure the continuity of administrative services while maintaining a minimum number of officials who work in the presential mode at the House’s headquarters,

- Encouragement of remote working and reduction of the number of officials in the common spaces to one official per office, in addition to holding meetings via videoconference,

- Reducing the use of paper documents and using digital management of administrative documents,

- Suspension of the House’s restaurant services, ban of gatherings, and respect for distancing,

- Installation of a thermal camera at the entrance to the House’s headquarters, and monitoring of the health condition of the various people attending the House’s headquarters,

- Regular disinfection of offices and spaces under the supervision of the health unit, and provision of medical masks and disinfectants,

- Monitoring the health status of positive cases, identifying contacts, and putting them in quarantine for a period at the end of which a test is mandatory before enabling them to access the House’s headquarters,

- The administration of the House of Representatives has contributed to the House fulfilling all its prerogatives during the pandemic. Thus, the House has not ceased to perform its constitutional responsibilities, unlike some foreign parliaments that have stopped working during certain periods,

- The mobilization of the administration and its officials was appreciated and commended by the various organs and bodies of the House, and also by the deputies who expressed their satisfaction on the occasion of the discussion of the 2021 draft budget within the Finance and Economic Development Committee of the House of Representatives.