Personal Benefit No. Fine Payments Questioned

TDT | Manama

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Muharraq Municipal Council chairman and Fourth Constituency representative Abdulaziz Al Naar has questioned the legal and financial basis for allegedly collecting fines imposed on boat owners at Muharraq port through a personal BenefitPay number.

Al Naar said the General Directorate of Marine Resources, under the Supreme Council for Environment, should clarify the authority under which government-related fines are being collected in this manner.

He argued that government fines should be paid through approved official channels in line with state financial regulations, ensuring that every transaction is documented and that both public funds and the rights of those making the payments are protected.

“This is not simply a minor violation or a routine administrative procedure,” Al Naar said, calling for clarification over who receives the money, how the payments are recorded and how they are subsequently transferred into the relevant government accounts.

He also called on the authorities to explain the legal basis for requesting that boat owners transfer fine payments to what he described as a personal BenefitPay number.

Al Naar said the dispute forms part of a wider issue surrounding the management of Muharraq port, where a number of boat owners have recently received violations despite, he said, having used the site for more than 20 years.

According to him, the owners had been waiting for the port to be formally regulated so that they could register their boats through an official process.

He said registration was opened only to a limited number of boat owners before being closed to others, leaving some without a formal berth or alternative location for their vessels.

The council chairman said he had previously raised the matter during a Muharraq Municipal Council session, including concerns over the cleanliness of some boats, their locations within the port and the need for clearer records identifying boats and their owners.

He also referred to land that he said had been leased by the marine resources authorities to an investor several years ago but remains unused and fenced off.

Al Naar argued that the land could potentially form part of a broader solution to improve the organisation of the port and provide additional space or services.

He called on the Ministry of Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture and other competent authorities to open an administrative and financial inquiry into the mechanism used to collect the fines.

He also urged officials to review the measures taken against boat owners and develop what he described as a comprehensive solution to regularise their position.

Al Naar said enforcing regulations should not come at the expense of people’s rights, adding that the jetty should be managed through clear rules, transparent financial procedures and fair access to registration.

He said any solution should protect both public funds and the interests of boat owners who have been associated with Muharraq port for decades.