MP Mubarak Al-Hajraf

KUWAIT: Opposition MP Mubarak Al-Hajraf said on Tuesday that he plans to file to grill Commerce and Industry Minister Khaled Al-Roudhan for alleged financial violations and benefitting from his post. The lawmaker charged that a company linked to Roudhan and his family called Seenar has won a contract with the ministry of commerce and industry which represents a big violation to the country's laws.

Hajraf said if the reported contract is proved, the minister must resign or he will be grilled in the national assembly and most likely face a vote of no-confidence. He said that his threat comes after a long time advising the minister to rectify all the violations and prevent awarding the contract to that company, but the minister refused to heed with the advice.

He also accused the minister of misleading lawmakers by providing false information to questions by parliament members, thus obstructing the functioning of the assembly. Hajraf also criticized the minister's handling of a state fund for supporting small and medium scale business ventures by Kuwaitis, saying the fund has failed to live up to expectations.

In the meantime, MP Riyadh Al-Adasani yesterday said he might file to grill Health Minister Sheikh Basel Al-Sabah if he fails to probe the death of a Kuwaiti girl yesterday while at hospital as her family has accused an expatriate doctor of responsibility. The ministry has already formed a probe committee to investigate the conditions of the death and the minister said he will take the necessary measures after the results of the probe.

Adasani said he will continue to monitor the developments of the investigation and if no action was taken, he will grill the minister. MP Nasser Al-Dossari meanwhile said the girl has reportedly died of an injection given by an expatriate female doctor and demanded an investigation into the allegations.

The lawmaker also demanded that authorities should not allow the doctor to leave the country before the probe is completed and legal actions are taken. He also demanded that a new law should be issued to toughen penalties against medical errors.

By B Izzak