By B Izzak

KUWAIT: Forty-two new candidates yesterday signed to run for general elections scheduled for September 29, bringing the number of candidates after four days of registration to 264, including 15 females. One member of the dissolved assembly, former MP Khlail Al-Saleh, was among the new candidates raising the number of hopefuls from the dissolved house to 28. In addition, four former MPs from previous assemblies also registered to contest the polls. They include Askar Al-Enezi, Ali Al-Deqbasi, Daifallah Byramia and Abdullah Al-Kandari. Enezi said after filing his nomination papers that the country is passing through a new era and a period of reforms. He described this as a unique transition. Former MP Deqbasi said that too much time has been wasted in disputes and now it is time to work.

Jenan Bushehri, a former minister who resigned after a grilling two years ago, said that the country is passing through a historical and exceptional period that began with the June 22^nd speech of HH the Amir and dissolving the national assembly and eventually changing the voting method by adopting for the first time the Civil ID instead of the electoral rolls. Bushehri called for legislation to fight rife corruption, charging that "we have reached a stage where we see lawmakers backing legislation for corruption." New candidate Wasmi Al-Wasmi said that true reforms can be achieved through legislation and not only through talk. Some 800,000 eligible voters head to the ballots on September 29 to elect a new assembly after the Amir dissolved the previous house over continued political disputes. Registration of candidates ends on September 7 while withdrawal from the race will continue until September 22.