DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – The Sultan of Oman announced a change in the constitution of the Gulf country on Monday, with changes that include the appointment of a crown prince for the first time and measures to increase government transparency, state news agency reported.
The move, a year after the death of Sultan Qaboos bin Said, who pulled Oman into modernity and skillfully navigated the region’s sectarian and political divisions, comes at a time when the government faces increasing pressure at home. Constitutional amendments bring the iconoclast Oman closer to other areas of the Gulf and dispel fears of any destabilizing succession crisis in the future.
Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, the former Minister of Culture, came to power last year amid intense speculation that took over the sultanate after the death of his cousin, who left no heirs. His name was written on a sealed envelope left at the palace in Muscat.
Now, there will be no more mystery or stormy theater. Sultan Haitham, who quietly left his mark last year by renaming and reorganizing ministries previously controlled by his predecessor, changed the basic law of Oman to allow the appointment of a crown prince, the practice of succession for all other Arab states in the Gulf.
Monday’s announcement did not specify who the Crown Prince would be or what responsibilities he would have.
“This is revolutionary,” said Bader al-Saif, an assistant professor of history at the University of Kuwait who studies Oman. “It took (Sultan Haitham) a year to absorb everything, and now he is moving forward with his own brand. You do not change the basic law lightly. “
The sultan’s decree also creates a committee to monitor and evaluate the performance of senior government officials. It is an apparent effort to encourage transparency and accountability as the country struggles to borrow after credit agencies listed its debt as “junk” – which means a higher risk of default. The debt stood at about 60% of Oman’s gross domestic product last year.
Earlier this month, Oman’s state news agency announced that the country expects a budget deficit of about $ 5.7 billion in 2021 and plans to borrow more and draw from its reserves to fill the gap. The sultanate, which produces just under 1 million barrels of oil a day, felt the pain of falling oil prices amid the coronavirus pandemic. The International Monetary Fund estimated that Oman’s economy shrank 10% last year, the sharpest contraction among Gulf countries.