Minister Ahmad Al-Jassar

KUWAIT: Minister of Electricity and Water Minister Ahmad Al-Jassar formed an investigations committee in the drowning accident of a worker of a contractor at the west Doha station three days earlier. The committee will check the contractor's compliance with security and safety procedures in the jobs he was given. The Ministry of Electricity and Water's workers union said earlier this is not the first accident of its type, as many similar accidents took place before and the fault lies in unqualified companies, along with grave mistakes and violations. It called for reconsideration in dealing with contractors of modest capacities that do not care about their workers.

Labor department's system

Acting Director General of the Public Authority for Manpower (PAM) Abdullah Al-Motoutah chaired a meeting that included the director of labor departments in the presence of Deputy Director General for Planning and Approval of Skills Levels Mubarak Al-Azmi. Motoutah said several recommendations were made, most notably of working hours from 7:00 am to 3:00 pm, and directors were asked to select several employees to work during this time.

Kuwaiti fishermen

Chairman of the priorities committee Dr Yousuf Al-Zalzalah stressed the importance of the fishing profession in Kuwait, saying it is the 'heritage of our grandfathers' and it is right for some citizens to sustain it despite modernization and social changes. He said Kuwait's fishermen are keen to maintain food security by fishing for shrimps and fish for years, and the state must provide all the facilities that help them to increase their catch, so seafood prices can be reasonable.

Zalzalah said attention should be paid to the fishing profession and remove all challenges Kuwaiti fishermen face for the public interest. He rued that what actually happens is to the contrary, and the evidence is the latest unfair decision by the coastguard to force all Kuwaiti shrimping boats that operate in international waters to use the Um Al-Maradem customs center and not allow them use of the nearby Doha center that they have been using for more than 20 years, while foreign boats are allowed to do so. Zalzalah said the decision must be cancelled, "otherwise we will have a stand towards those who caused the problem."

By Meshaal Al-Enezi