The location of the Mutlaa City on Kuwait’s map

KUWAIT: Yesterday's Municipal Council meeting witnessed controversy over Minister of State for Municipal Affairs and Minister of Communication Essa Al-Kandari's rejection of a number of the council's resolutions, which might lead to activating article 14 of municipal law number 5/2005, according to member Mane Al-Ajmi.

The head of the council's reform and development committee Osama Al-Otaibi said that an agreement was reached with Kuwait Municipality to remove 223 ranches that had been hindering the construction of the Mutlaa City residential project. He added that all obstacles had been removed in the West Abdullah Al-Mubarak project and that the municipality promised to remove its scrap yard that is hindering the construction of South Saad Al-Abdullah project.

The council also agreed to form an independent committee for the disabled including members Ajmi, Meshaal Al-Juwaisri, Hassan Kamal, Fahd Al-Sane and Abdullah Al-Kandari. Ajmi also warned of the infrastructure of Shadadiya industrial area, noting that the project was a sensitive and important one because it involved the construction of chemical factories. "We do not want to build another Um Al-Haiman," he warned, before the project was referred to the council's technical committee for further study.

Children's rights

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) yesterday issued a directive concerning law number 21/2015 pertaining with children's rights, highlighting three major points. The first point stipulates that 'upon employer approval, a working mother is to be given a two-year unpaid leave to look after her baby a maximum of three times throughout her service'. The directive added that the leave will not be interrupted before it was over and that it will not affect other leaves.

The second point in the directive tackled article 54 of the law that calls for reducing pregnant women's working hours by at least two hours starting from the sixth month. It also bans having pregnant women work overtime throughout the pregnancy. The third point in the directive tackled entitling working mothers two hours to breastfeed their babies during the first two years of the baby's age without reducing their wages.

Court hearings

A court order was issued yesterday annulling the decision to dissolve Ardhiya co-op's board of directors and compensating it KD 4,000. Commenting on the verdict, Zaki Al-Sulaimi, Assistant Undersecretary for Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor stressed that the ministry would go to the appeal court. Separately, the criminal court yesterday set a hearing to be held on May 30 to pass its sentence in the Fintas group case filed by state security against 13 citizens, including four ruling family members.

By Meshaal Al-Enezi