Municipal Council members to elect president, deputy today
Connecting power to 1,600 buildings in ‘city’ delayed
KUWAIT CITY, May 23: The president and deputy president of the new Municipal Council will be elected Thursday, May 24 by the ten elected members and six appointed members during the first session of the council.
According to a report on Gulf News, 63 candidates including a woman Fatima Al-Rasheedi representing ten electoral constituencies had competed in the elections, which took place on May 12 and resulted in the selection of ten members. The Cabinet appointed the remaining six members one day after the elections, even though it had two weeks to declare its candidates.
The new Municipal Council has only one woman as a member – Maha Al-Baghli. Even though the number of female electors is higher than the number of male electors, very low female representation of only one member each was witnessed in the Municipal Council as well as the parliament this time.
The Municipal Council, based on the relevant bylaws, will convene minimum two times a month to discuss municipal policies and projects. It will be responsible for preparing policies and plans, assessing projects related to environmental, health and urbanization aspects, approving the construction of cities, roads, markets, burial grounds and slaughterhouses, and deal with matters related to drainage systems, gardens and landscaping.
The Municipal Council was first established in 1930 after the first public elections were held for Kuwaitis to cast their votes and elect candidates. A total of 11 municipal councils were elected since Kuwait achieved independence in 1961. (Source — Gulf News)
Meanwhile, the delay in connecting electricity to West Abdullah AlMubarak City is making life in 1,600 buildings impossible, reports Al-Qabas daily.
Residents of the buildings are frustrated by the darkness blamed on failure of concerned authorities to illuminate the area. The situation has exacerbated to the point that some residents are considering writing off
the structures they began constructing few months ago.
Media coordinator for residents of the city Mohammad Al-Otaibi disclosed that contracts related to the execution of main power plants for the area are underway, according to the schedule presented by the contractor and Public Authority for Housing Welfare, but indicated efforts to conceal the period in which electricity will be connected.
He stated the contract announced by Public Authority for Housing Welfare was activated on March 12, and it’s expected to end after two years. He pointed out that residents will feel the brunt of delay in connecting electricity for additional one year. “This will affect those who have completed their buildings, especially as many of the buildings have reached advanced and completion stages”, he stressed.
He reasoned that leaving buildings unoccupied will expose them to destruction and theft. He reiterated that government will bear extra costs in the form of rent allowance running into KD 9 million if the situation continues the same way for another one year, not forgetting other ensuing social vices.