Muwaizri confirms spread of corruption in the country

KUWAIT CITY, April 25: MP Dr Salwa Al-Jassar has stressed the need for the government to take serious steps to curb the soaring prices of commodities in the local market.

Urging the government to form an emergency committee consisting of members from the ministries of Commerce, Industry and Social Affairs, in addition to the Cooperative Societies Union (CSU) and Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) to identify reasons behind the continuous hike in the prices of goods and find appropriate solutions to protect citizens from greedy traders, who have been manipulating the prices to earn more profits.

Al-Jassar lamented the absence of laws on the government's supervisory role on consumer protection makes it necessary for the concerned authorities to look into the issue and stop the unreasonable hike in the prices of goods.  She pointed out most citizens have opted to buy these commodities from neighboring countries, which sell these items at lower prices.  She said other countries have reduced prices when the purchasing power of the people declined due to the global financial crisis.

Regulate
Stating the emergency committee must regulate prices and oversee consumer practices by educating the citizens on consumer affairs and protecting them from unjustified price hikes, Al-Jassar suggested the KCCI's functions should include ensuring that traders do not raise prices.  She asserted the chamber should not only protect the traders but also the citizens, who are the victims of profiteers.  She stressed the need for CSU to stand firmly against any company trying to make profits at the expense of citizens.

Al-Jassar affirmed she supports the proposed salary increment for citizens due to the failure of the concerned authorities to regulate the prices.

In a related development, MP Daifallah Buramiya argued the recent statement issued by Commerce and Industry Minister Ahmad Rashed Al-Haroun that the local goods are the cheapest in the Gulf was aimed at protecting some traders.  He opined the minister seems oblivious to the fact that citizens are not isolated from the rest of the world and they probably know more about the prices of consumer goods than him.  He said if the minister lacks the ability to stop the greedy traders, he should not justify his weakness through the issuance of flimsy statements.  "If the minister can not enforce the law and stop a few traders from exploiting the citizens, then he should step down to give way to someone who is more capable of performing his duties efficiently.

Meanwhile, MP Shuaib Al-Muwaizri has confirmed that corruption has spread in the country, which pushed Kuwait down in the international indicator of transparency and combating corruption.  He cited as an example the irregularities uncovered in the tenders of the Ministry of Public Works (MPW), which allegedly deprived the local companies of their right to participate in some projects like Doha link, passenger building at Kuwait International Airport, and development of Jahra Road .

Al-Muwaizri called on the government and the Parliament to convene an urgent meeting to discuss ways to combat corruption.  He said the privatization draft bill should not be approved unless the country eliminates corruption.  He unveiled his plan to present a proposal on referring those involved in corrupt practices to the court and imposing harsher penalties, such as life imprisonment. He demanded suspension of any project in the development plan until the passage of the anti-corruption draft bill.

Support
MP Dr Maasouma Al-Mubarak confirmed her support for the steps taken by Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Mohammad Al-Afasi to combat corruption.  "We support him because he has proven his commitment to combat corruption, particularly in the issuance of visas.  This only shows that the minister is a law-abiding citizen and fierce fighter against corruption," she concluded.

In another development, the parliamentary Interior and Defense Committee approved some draft bills during its meeting Sunday.

Committee Rapporteur MP Shuaib Al-Muwaizri revealed the panel approved a draft bill on allowing military personnel to grow their beard, proposed amendments to law number 17/1957 to impose harsher penalties on foreigners who enter the country illegally, and proposed amendments to law number 17/1959 to change the name of the Immigration Department to Residency Department.

Al-Muwaizri said the committee also approved decree number 16/2009 on the temporary provisions of Articles 27 and 32 of law number 35/1962 on parliamentary elections to ensure the identity of the voter matches that stated in the nationality certificate.

The panel, however, postponed deliberations on a draft bill on nationality until its next meeting during which the interior minister and presenters of the bill are expected to attend.

Also, member of the Environment Affairs Committee MP Saadoun Al-Hammad said the panel approved the environmental protection draft bill, which contains 135 articles, except article 122.  He added the bill was referred to the Parliament immediately after the committee's approval.

By Abubakar A. Ibrahim

© Arab Times 2010