KUWAIT: The National Assembly on Wednesday endorsed final accounts of many government, affiliate and independent authorities for the fiscal years, 2018-2019 and 2019-2020. Thirty-nine MPs voted in favor and 12 voted against out of the present total 51 legislators.

The departments, final accounts of which have been approved, are the Public Authority for Minors Affairs, the Public Authority for Food and Nutrition, the Public Authority for Youth, the Kuwait Fire Force, the Public Authority for Civil Information, the public authority for publication of the Quran, Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority, Al-Zakat House, Kuwait News Agency, the Public Authority against Corruption, the Public Authority for Disability Affairs, the Public Authority for Roads and Transportation, the Capital Market Authority, the Public Authority for the Assessment of Damages resulting from the Iraqi Aggression.

Others are the Public Institution for Social Security, the Public Authority for Labor Force, the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, Kuwait University, the Public Authority for Partnership between the Private and Public Sectors, Kuwait Municipality, the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources, the Natoinal Assembly, the Credit Bank of Kuwait, the National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprises, the Central Bank of Kuwait, the Environment Public Authority, the Public Authority for Housing Care, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research. The assembly also approved the final account of the state financial administration for the 2019-2020 fiscal year. The parliament speaker lifted the complementary session.

In another development, the National Assembly approved amending the penal code whereby specifying penal responsibility for the legal personality in corruption cases. The 55 MPs present in the session voted in favor of the bill in the first reading after concluding discussion of a report by the committee of legal and legislative rights regarding the bill for amending Law 31/1970 that modifies some terms of the Law 16/1960.

The law explanatory memo adds a chapter titled "the penal responsibility of the legal personality," incorporating a set of penalties against the legal personality, with exemption of government departments, in the cases he (or she) may commit a corruption offense. The relevant laws, applicable on the legal personalities is also applicable of regular personalities. - KUNA