The National Assembly

By B Izzak

KUWAIT: The National Assembly returns to regular meetings today after a stoppage for several weeks over the coronavirus pandemic and will begin by debating two heavyweight grillings against the finance and interior ministers.

MP Riyadh Al-Adasani has filed to grill Finance Minister Barrak Al-Sheetan for allegedly submitting austerity proposals to the cabinet that would directly impact the income of Kuwaiti citizens. The lawmaker is also accusing the minister of failing to adequately act on the corruption case of the Malaysian sovereign fund.

MP Shuwaib Al-Muwaizri meanwhile filed to grill Interior Minister Anas Al-Saleh over allegations that he made economic benefits by making commercial contracts with the government, failed to halt physical abuse by police and also failed to stop violations in the electoral rolls.

The lawmaker on Sunday insisted that the grilling should be held in public for the facts to be known by the people. Saleh meanwhile asked the public prosecution to investigate the allegations that his companies signed contracts with the government reflecting conflict of interest.

In the meantime, lawmakers on Sunday recalled the 30th anniversary of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait by highlighting the steadfastness of the Kuwaiti people that helped evict the Iraqi army only seven months after the August 2, 1990 invasion.

Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem said the Kuwaiti people succeeded in defending their homeland by sacrificing their blood for the sake of their country. MP Osama Al-Shaheen called on the assembly office to lift restrictions on the publication of a report prepared by a parliamentary fact-finding committee in 1995. He said that being a very important national document, the report must be released and the Kuwaiti people, especially the younger generation, be allowed to read it.

MP Ahmad Al-Fadhl called to honor martyrs during the invasion by naming streets after them and by teaching their stories at schools. MP Thamer Al-Suwait said the invasion anniversary is very painful but the Kuwaiti people overcame it by their unity, adding that what is more painful now is the wide-spread corruption in the country which he described as a new invasion.