Parliamentary work disrupted: MP
MP Jenan Bu Shehri has submitted a petition to the Constitutional Court on the constitutionality of Clause Three of Article 25 of the National Assembly Law, which exempts ministers from penalties for being absent in parliamentary sessions without a valid reason. Asserting this clause is unfair, the lawmaker pointed out that ministers have been frequently absent from parliamentary sessions; particularly during the current term. She said such absences have disrupted parliamentary work and this has negatively affected the citizens’ interests. She cited Article 16 of the National Assembly Law, which obligates the government or its representative to attend parliamentary sessions, not to ensure quorum is achieved but to carry out its tasks as per the Constitution.
She also clarified that the specified quorum is based on the number of attendees whether they are elected (lawmakers) or appointed (ministers). She went on to say that the aim of Article 16 is to protect the citizens’ rights and enable the Assembly to accomplish its tasks. She affirmed support for bills on amending the National Assembly Law to ensure justice in dealing with ministers and lawmakers in terms of commitment to attending parliamentary sessions and cut the way for the government to dodge questioning by being absent from the sessions. In another development, MP Mubarak Al-Tasha urged His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- Sabah to stop some ministers from putting him in a critical situation through the issuance of decisions which are not part of their duties as members of the caretaker government.
He added Minister of Justice, Awqaf and Islamic Affairs and State Minister for Integrity Promotion Abdulaziz Majed Al-Majed has responded to his request to verify the information he received that the Secretariat General of the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs will give up its seat at the General Assembly of Kuwait Finance House (KFH). He said Al-Majed denied the allegation, stressing that the Secretariat General is keen on protecting the seat. Nevertheless, the Secretariat General did not attend the meeting of KFH last Thursday, he disclosed. He stressed the need for His Highness the Prime Minister to rectify the erroneous decisions of Al-Majed and other ministers.
Meanwhile, MP Abdulaziz Al-Saqaabi revealed in a press statement that about 9,000 Kuwaiti families are suffering, because they cannot obtain a permit for the construction of their houses in Mutlaa – N1,N2, N3 and N4 – despite the completion of infrastructure works and public utilities. He explained that these citizens were informed they cannot obtain a building permit due to the decision of the Council of Ministers to link the issuance of such a permit to the available cash at Kuwait Credit Bank (KCB). He pointed out the decision seems correct but the details show that it was issued based on a wrong hypothesis – that all beneficiaries will start the construction of their houses at the same time. He argued this is inaccurate taking into consideration that 18,519 construction permits were issued earlier; but only 6,800 houses have been constructed so far due to the different circumstances of the beneficiaries.
He disclosed the cash available at KCB is KD470 million – double the required amount (KD240 million). He added that according to official reports, only 42 percent of the KD800 million allocated by the previous legislature to the beneficiaries of Mutlaa, South Abdullah Mubarak and Khaitan housing projects have been utilized and the remaining amount is still with KCB. He underscored the need for plausible solutions to the housing problem like the amendment of the law on the establishment of KCB, which will take some years. He said the beneficiaries of Mutlaa housing project should not wait for three or more years to obtain a building permit. He suggested that the most immediate solution is to de-link the issuance of a building permit from the availability of cash in KCB. He added the issuance of a building permit is part of the duties of a caretaker government, considering it is an urgent matter.
Source- Arab Times.
