Family Influence n Saudi Arabia: Al-Rumayyan Family
Family
Influence in Saudi Arabia
Al-Rumayyan Family
This
report examines the case of Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Governor of the Public
Investment Fund (PIF), his brother Osama, and his brother-in-law Mazen
Al-Kahmous, Head of the Anti-Corruption Authority. It presents them as a
composite model of power concentration, lack of separation between public duty
and private interests, and the exploitation of family ties as gateways to
sovereign contracts.
Through published official statements, these relationships are marketed as competitive advantages used by a local law firm to outpace others in the business sector, constituting a clear violation of fair competition and threatening governance standards in Saudi Arabia by undermining institutional independence.
The report evaluates the impact of this overlap on governance, transparency, competitive fairness, and institutional autonomy, referring to Saudi legal texts and international governance standards.
1.
Concentration of Roles in the Hands of Yasir Al-Rumayyan
-Governmental
and Investment Roles
-Governor
of the Public Investment Fund (since 2015)
-Chairman
of Saudi Aramco (since 2019)
-Minister-ranked
advisor at the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers
-Chairman
of the Decision Support Center at the Royal Court
-Member
of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs
-Corporate
and Institutional Positions
-Chairman
of Ma’aden
-Chairman
of Sanabil Investments
-Chairman
of Noon Investments
-Chairman
of King Abdullah Financial District
-Chairman
of Golf Saudi
-Chairman
of the Saudi Golf Federation
-Chairman
of Riyadh Air
-Vice
Chairman of ROSHN
-Vice
Chairman of Riyadh Downtown Development Company
-International
and Private Affiliations
-Board
Member of Uber Technologies (since 2016)
-Board
Member of Arm Ltd (since 2018)
-Board
Member of NEOM (since 2019)
-Board
Member of AMAALA (since 2019)
-Board
Member of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City
-Board
Member of the Royal Commission for Makkah and the Holy Sites
-Board
Member of Red Sea Global
-Board
Member of Qiddiya Investment Company
-Trustee
of the National Museum
-Board
Member of the Saudi Center for International Strategic Partnerships
International governance frameworks, such as those issued by the OECD, strongly warn against power concentration in the hands of a single individual. Such overlap undermines accountability and transparency within institutions. Saudi leadership disregards this principle, routinely issuing royal decrees that place multiple leadership roles in the hands of one person, adversely affecting operational efficiency and disrupting the integrity of the state, its judiciary, business sector, and investment landscape.
-Direct
conflict of interest between the sovereign fund and implementing entities
-Administrative
inefficiency due to fragmented responsibilities
-Threat
to equal opportunity
-Potential
politicization of investment to serve family interests
2.
Informal Authority and the Network of Influence
Key
figures in this report:
-Yasir
Al-Rumayyan – Head of the sovereign system
-Mazen
Al-Kahmous – Head of the Anti-Corruption Authority, Yasir's brother-in-law
-Osama
Al-Rumayyan – Yasir's brother, Senior Business Advisor at Tasheel Law Firm
3. Osama
Al-Rumayyan – The Core Scandal in the Family Power Network
-Holds a
Bachelor of Science from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
-Works as
a business advisor at a law firm without legal or administrative qualifications
-Markets
himself through personal connections, without demonstrating tangible expertise
or professional experience
This
description amounts to a public admission that his position is built on
personal influence rather than professional qualifications. His influence is
presented as a necessary gateway for sovereign projects.
-Examples
of Major Projects Brokered by Osama Al-Rumayyan
-NEOM –
Cybersecurity contracts worth SAR 400 million
-ROSHN –
Achieved 45% local content ahead of schedule
-Soudah –
Migrated systems to a sovereign-compliant national cloud
-Ministry
of Sports – SAR 60 million memorandum of understanding
-Global
Law Firms – Exclusive representation through Tasheel
-American
Tech Partnership – SAR 150 million in projected sales
-Some of
them tied directly to PIF or companies chaired by Yasir
-Show
clear use of family ties to direct state contracts
-Undermine
fair competition among law firms
-Threaten
transparency in sovereign legal and professional services
-Osama
exemplifies the transformation of family influence into an informal executive
power. His profile is not symbolic, it models a form of control rooted in
kinship networks embedded in state institutions, where outsiders are excluded.
-Yasir
Al-Rumayyan
-Osama
Al-Rumayyan, and
-Mazen
Al-Kahmous
-Mohammed
Al-Tuwaijri – Former Minister, Royal Court Advisor
-Hala
Al-Tuwaijri – President of the Human Rights Commission
-No audit
reports available for the PIF
-No
public disclosures on contract allocation in key national projects
-Anti-Corruption
Authority chaired by Yasir’s in-law
-Delegation
mechanisms are opaque
-Personal
connections act as a gatekeeper for sovereign contracts
-Tendering
and contract terms remain unpublished
-No
independent parliamentary or judicial oversight
-No free
press or investigative journalism
-Investment
channels depend on personal ties
-Capable
individuals are sidelined
-Trust
from investors is eroded
-Legal
procedures are weakened
-Competitive
equity declines
7.
Structural Damage to the State and Institutions
Judiciary
loses independence
-Influence
spans from lower courts to the Supreme Court
-A lawful
state becomes impossible under entrenched influence
-Critics
face systemic injustice
-Integrity
is dismantled and law becomes selective
Family
networks operate like parasites, weakening the state while benefiting themselves
8.
Relevant Legal Provisions
-Saudi
Companies Law (Royal Decree M/132 of 1443H): Articles 46 & 77
-Governance
Regulations – Capital Market Authority: Article 20
Remedy:
-Align
with international governance standards like those issued by the OECD.
-Enact
legislation that prohibits multiple sovereign appointments and enforces
conflict-of-interest transparency.
-Restructure
the Anti-Corruption Authority to ensure independence and prohibit family ties
to officials
Create
independent oversight for PIF projects and national contracts.
-Publicly
disclose all tenders and contracts on accessible government platforms.
-Empower
investigative journalism and legal protections for whistleblowers.
-Strengthen
judicial independence via transparent selection and oversight.
Establish
an inclusive institutional environment that ensures fair opportunity and protects
against nepotism
Conclusion
Influential
families like Al-Rumayyan, Al-Shathri, and Al-Tuwaijri represent glaring
examples of structural corruption that transform courts and institutions into
tools of closed networks. This undermines the distinction between public office
and private interest, where sovereign roles overlap with family dominance over
regulatory bodies and monopolize representation and access to power.
Such
familial or tribal clusters often become part of the state apparatus,
inflicting deep harm on society and individuals. This manifests in
discrimination based on lineage or region, legal violations, and entrenched
corruption immune even to intervention by the head of state. State integrity
becomes hostage to inter-family agreements, forcing leadership to turn a blind
eye to misconduct due to the influence these families wield over justice,
contracting, and employment, hurting the unemployed and anti-corruption
advocates lacking such connections and directly violating equal opportunity
principles.
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