Kuwait - National assembly speaker Marzouk Al-Ghanem said yesterday that MPs and the government will discuss the security situation in the country in the assembly bureau today.
The speaker said that foreign, interior, justice and oil ministers in addition to the state minister for cabinet affairs will attend the meeting to which all MPs are invited. He said the meeting will discuss the government preparations to meet any emergency in the wake of fast-paced security and political developments in the region.
Over a dozen MPs had requested a special debate on the issue in the national assembly last week but the assembly decided to hold the discussion behind closed doors at the assembly bureau.
Ghanem also said that the assembly will be holding weekly sessions on Tuesdays and Wednesdays until July 1 when the assembly will hold its closing session and start its four-month summer recess. The speaker said that the assembly can also hold other additional sessions if necessary and may convene on Thursdays.
Final session
Head of the assembly priorities committee MP Yousef Al-Zalzalah meanwhile said that it has been agreed with the speaker to hold the final session on July 1, adding that between now and then, the assembly plans to complete 10 laws including the security cameras, a law to combat electronic crimes and judiciary independence legislation. Before going into summer recess, the assembly will debate the state budget for 2015/2016 in addition to the state's financial status. Most of the sessions will be held during the holy fasting month of Ramadan expected to start on June 18. The head of the assembly budgets committee MP Adnan Abdulsamad said yesterday the panel discussed the budgets for the Petrochemicals Industries Company (PIC) and Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC). The lawmaker said that PIC is projecting to post a profit of KD 167.6 million while KUFPEC is projecting a loss of $285 million.
Ajmi's case
The administrative court yesterday ruled that it is not competent to look into the case of deporting opposition figure Saad Al-Ajmi to Saudi Arabia after the government revoked his citizenship. Ajmi, who was the spokesman of the opposition Popular Action Movement (PAM), was stripped of his citizenship in September last year by the council of ministers which cited false procedures. Two months ago, he was arrested by the state security and deported to Saudi Arabia. His lawyers have challenged both the citizenship and deportation issues. Last month, another bench of the same court ruled against the government action of revoking the citizenship of former opposition Islamist MP Abdullah Al- Barghash and many of his family members. In another ruling, the appeals court upheld a 40-month jail term against two Kuwaiti activists on charges of being members of the Islamic Liberation Party and distributing pamphlets for the party calling to dismantle the regime in Kuwait and other Arab countries.
© Kuwait Times 2015
