KUWAIT: Minister of Social Affairs and Labor and Planning Hind Al-Subaih gestures during a session at the National Assembly yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat

KUWAIT: The National Assembly decided yesterday to delay the grilling of Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Hind Al-Subaih to today's follow-up session. MP Saleh Ashour had filed an interpellation motion against the minister on issues such related to privatizing cooperative societies and purported manipulation of financial allotments for orphans, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported. Subaih is also Minister of State for Planning and Development.

Following the session, MP Abdullah Al-Turaiji announced intentions to file yet another grilling motion against Subaih tomorrow. The lawmaker accused the minister of 'failure to enforce the law' that penalizes those who hinder national unity, not being up to her position's responsibilities and having negative attitudes towards the Assembly.

Turaiji explained that the minister "stood still and did nothing" when a senior social affairs ministry official allegedly posted some 'racial comments' on his Twitter account. "Accordingly, we have to be up to the responsibilities stipulated in the constitution to avoid our silence being taken as an excuse for further violations," he stated.

On Ashour's grilling, Turaiji said that he would attempt to evaluate Subaih's arguments during the debate today before making his decision whether to support or oppose the grilling accordingly. "Regardless of the result of Ashour's motion, I am filing mine (tomorrow morning)," he emphasized.

Dashti's immunity

Also during the session, the parliament approved the public prosecution's request to strip MP Abdulhameed Dashti of his parliamentary immunity. Dashti was stripped of his immunity in the state security case 10/2016 related to addressing abusive remarks against Saudi Arabia. Up to 41 MPs approved the request and five declined, out of the 46 MPs present in the session. The parliamentary legislative panel unanimously recommended in its meeting on March 13 the prosecution's request, denying that the case had any personal ill intentions.

The committee had clarified that the public prosecutor received a letter from the foreign ministry notifying him about an official memo addressed by the Saudi Embassy in Kuwait stating that the Dashti had uttered harmful remarks against the kingdom during an interview with Syrian television channel Al-Ekhabria on Feb 24. He was also accused of inciting against the kingdom. The MP had made similar remarks in previous TV interviews.

Elderly people's rights

Meanwhile, lawmakers endorsed a draft law to preserve the rights of the elderly for optimum care. The draft law identifies any Kuwaiti citizen above the age of 65 to be an elderly person, however it differentiates between an elderly person capable of independent living and one who does not have the wherewithal to do so, or is physically or mentally incapacitated.

The draft law provides numerous advantages enabling the elderly to secure their needs with ease and dignity, including the requirement that senior citizen cards be issued to them with which they could obtain government or public services without any hassle.

The elderly, in accordance with this law, would get some government services without charge, such as free bus passes, or special care at government clinics and hospitals. This draft law urges the private sector and civil society organizations to dabble into establishing and running elderly care facilities and to create means of supporting families that have elderly folks amongst them. Following voting on the draft law, Subaih touted the law but pointed out that it was an improvement on an existing law from the 1970s. She promised that she would implement the law when it is officially sanctioned by the government.

Illegal residents

In the meantime, the Assembly gave the thumbs up to several recommendations pertinent to the conditions of illegal residents (bedoons). The recommendations included the naturalization of worthy illegal residents, mainly the children of martyrs, Kuwaitis' relatives and military personnel.

They also called for handing out 'security cards' to illegal residents who are not included in naturalization lists so that they could gain access to basic humanitarian and social rights, recruiting them at military and government agencies and bodies as well as the private sector, and for reconsidering existing security restrictions on illegal residents' families. Furthermore, illegal residents should be given access to birth and death certificates, marriage and divorce contracts, driving licenses and public schools.

Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah had warned that the government would abstain from voting unless such recommendations were reformulated. But, he had assured that the issue of illegal residents was given top priority by the government.

Government contracts

Also yesterday, the Assembly approved a recommendation for excluding government contracts for companies with a record of flaws and in and shortcomings in past deals' execution. The parliament approved the recommendation against such companies, with a record of breaches and irregularities recorded by the Audit Bureau, to avert recurrence of such shortcomings, Moreover, the parliamentary commission for protecting public funds will present to the parliament, at the upcoming session, a report about a company with an identical record.

Also in the same session, Minister of Commerce and Industry Yousef Al-Ali pledged to hold a presentation on terms' compatibility, due to be addressed to the central tenders committee regarding an infrastructural project, pending the funds protection panel's cross-examination of the company.

Sovereign rating

Furthermore, the parliament approved an address from the Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Anas Al-Saleh to the financial affairs committee regarding prospected downgrading of Kuwait's sovereign rating internationally. The MPs blessed a request by MP Faisal Al-Kandari urging the Assembly to tackle conditions in the oil sector and another one addressed to the finance minister re-examine irregular acts and performance reported by the Audit Bureau.

In response to the motion, presented by Kandari, the minister said that the examination and hazards committee at Kuwait Petroleum Corporation had tasked him with following up on remarks of the Audit Bureau. As to "purported targeting of special allocations" for the oil personnel, the minister affirmed the government serious care for the sector and the workers, explaining that the government is actually seeking to "rationalize some of the allotments granted to leaders" in the public and oil sectors.

Universities' bill

Separately, Minister of Education and Higher Education Bader Al-Essa affirmed significance of the public universities' bill, allowing establishment of branches for Kuwait University and the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training in the country's six governorates.

During the session, the minister said the said bill had been referred to the parliamentary committee for educational affairs, pending voting in the parliament. On press reports about non-accredited certificates, he said 200 persons who work in the private sector and suspected of involvement in the case have been referred to the public prosecution. - KUNA