By Jaber Al-Hamoud
Renewable energy projects to generate 20,000 jobs
KUWAIT CITY, Nov 23: The Court of Cassation will Sunday, Nov 24 issue a verdict on the appeal submitted against verdict of the Court of Appeals on the case referred to as TIMAS case on real-estate fraud and money laundering filed against employees of TIMAS and companies affiliated to it.
The appealed verdict had sentenced 14 expatriates to jail terms of five to ten years and a fine of KD 2 million for laundering amounts reaching KD 109 million. The verdict had upheld the decision of Public Prosecution to seize the financial assets of TIMAS and another company, as well as seize the financial assets of the first defendant – the fugitive CEO of TIMAS.
It is worth mentioning that the Public Prosecution charged the suspects with money laundering after they collected money from the victims through fraud actions by persuading them to invest their money in profitable real estate projects in UAE and Turkey but instead transferred the money to bank accounts in Kuwait.
Meanwhile, the Criminal Court presided over by Counselor Mut’eb Al-Ardi will Sunday, Nov 24 hear the witnesses in the “Ministry of Interior Hospitality” case filed against 24 individuals. The court had previously dismissed a request for the release of the suspects.
Earlier, the first defendant had requested the court to allow him to return KD 10 million of the money seized by Public Prosecution for his release, but his request was dismissed. The defendant justified his request by saying, since the entire amount of the lawsuit is KD 31 million and other defendants have already paid KD 21 million, he will pay the rest of the amount (KD 10 million) for his release. However, the request was rejected.
Human trafficking:
In a move aimed at combating violations related to humantrafficking, Director General of General Department for Residency Affairs Brigadier Abdul Qader Chaba’an issued a circular to prevent the transfer of male or female domestic worker from one sponsor to another in the absence of the domestic worker and without the latter’s signature, reports Al-Anba daily quoting informed sources.
They affirmed that such a step would stop the violations and irregularities related to the transfer of domestic workers among sponsors or the so-called “sale of domestic workers”.
The sources explained that it is not allowed to transfer domestic worker from sponsor to another without the worker’s signature and his/her approval to work for the other sponsor. The process is similar to the transfer or sale of vehicles, which requires the presence of both seller and buyer in order to sign the documents in the presence of the traffic official.
20,000 more jobs:
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has disclosed that the use of renewable energy in Kuwait will generate 20,000 jobs by 2030 – about 10 percent of the 200,000 job opportunities expected to be generated in Arabian Gulf countries, reports Al-Anba daily.
The agency said the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will have a lion’s share of the job opportunities covering about 45 percent, followed by Saudi Arabia with 33 percent, Kuwait in third position, Oman and Qatar in fourth and fifth positions with seven and four percent respectively, while Bahrain is in the last and sixth position with just one percent.