Wednesday, Jan 04, 2012

Gulf News

Manama Shaikh Hamad Bin Jasem Al Thani, the Prime Minister of Qatar, is suing four Kuwaitis, including two editors-in-chief, for libel over claims he gave 200 million Qatari riyals (Dh201.74 million) to a former opposition lawmaker, the Al Aan news portal has reported.

Shaikh Hamad is taking legal action against former MP Saadoon Hamad, Shaikh Sabah Al Mohammad, the editor-in-chief of Al Shahed newspaper, Shaikh Khalifa Ali Al Khalifa, the editor-in-chief of Al Watan daily, and Othman Al Saeed, a presenter with Scoop channel, said Mushari Al Aseemi, a lawyer for the Qatari prime minister.

The suit was prompted by the publication in December of an article claiming that Shaikh Hamad, who is also Qatar’s foreign minister, gave the amount to former MP Mosallam Al Barrak. A copy of the alleged cheque was also published with only the first name of the beneficiary appearing. However, the bank that allegedly issued the cheque denied its existence and insisted that no cheque was signed by Shaikh Hamad in favour of a person named Mosallam.

Financial scandal

Al Barrak also denied the newspaper report and said he had no bank account in Doha. He added that his name on the alleged cheque was spelled “Mussalam” while it was “Mosallam” in his passport. Passport names are used to open bank accounts in the Gulf.

Kuwait last year was rocked by a financial scandal after several former lawmakers were investigated by the public prosecution for allegedly receiving huge amounts of money to influence their voting. The scandal broke out after local banks alerted the central bank to the unusually large funds that had been deposited into the bank accounts of 13 MPs.

The opposition used the trust crisis to pile up pressure on then Prime Minister Shaikh Nasser Al Mohammad to step down. The government resigned on November 28 and parliament was dissolved on December 6. National elections to choose 50 members of the House will be held on February 2, with around 400,000 eligible voters.

The bank that allegedly issued the cheque denied its existence and insisted that no cheque was signed by Shaikh Hamad in favour of a person named Mosallam.

By Habib Toumi ?Bureau Chief

Gulf News 2012. All rights reserved.