Announcement of State budget for next fiscal yr surprises panel

Committee tackles Mubarkiya Market issue

By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh

KUWAIT CITY, Jan 15: The parliamentary Budgets and Final Accounts Committee was surprised when the government announced the State budget for the next fiscal year without consulting the committee, says Committee Chairman MP Adnan Abdulsamad.

In a press statement, Abdulsamad pointed out the committee used to conduct consultations on the State budget with the Ministry of Finance before it is approved by the government.

He explained the State budget discussions in previous years did not delve into details as they focused on the framework and fundamentals such as the agreement on the price of oil per barrel and components of the budget.

He disclosed that the former government included the armament allocation in the State budget, affirming there was an agreement on this issue. He said the ministries of Defense and Finance approved the inclusion of the armament allocation to the State budget for the coming fiscal year.

Increase

He asserted: “It seems Finance Minister Mariam Al-Aqeel does not want the State budget to increase to more than KD 22.5 billion during her term.” He added the announcement made on Wednesday does not reflect the real budget.

He revealed the committee will invite the Ministry of Finance to discuss the framework of the State budget, stressing that Al-Aqeel should have discussed the budget with the committee before announcing it.

He clarified the committee insisted on the inclusion of the armament allocation to the State budget; because in previous years, the committee requested for the final account concerning the armament allocation but it received only statements which were not in line with the law and financial provisions stated by the State Audit Bureau (SAB). He stressed that including the armament allocation to the State budget improves monitoring and control over such allocation.

He added the Armament Law is limited to the Ministry of Defense, not all security institutions or the entire Defense Sector. He said the committee found out that the amount KD 700 million was deducted from the armament allocation, and then allotted for the National Guard to buy aircraft and other equipment under the pretext that the Defense Supreme Council approved this. He clarified the Defense Supreme Council cannot approve any decision which contravenes the laws.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Parliamentary Priorities Committee MP Ahmed Al-Fadl revealed the committee held its fourth meeting Wednesday with members and Rapporteur MP Osama Al-Shaheen in attendance. He said committee members Faisal Al-Kandari and Safa’a Al-Hasem apologized for their absence. He added Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Anas Al-Saleh was supposed to attend the meeting but he did not do so, indicating Director of the Office of State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Dekhail AlDekhail attended the meeting on behalf of Al-Saleh.

He disclosed the aim of the meeting was to listen to the government’s response to the grace period given to Minister of Finance Mariam Al-Aqeel to answer a number of issues in order to specify the agenda of the National Assembly. He said the committee wants to know the government’s alternative solutions to amend the articles of draft laws or even the bills it rejected.

He went on to say the committee also tackled the Mubarkiya Market issue, affirming that he handed over a file of documents collected from the tenants of shops including plans and receipts which prove these shops were established before 1994 when the government signed contracts with a company to develop the market.

He pointed out the committee wants the minister to match the documents in the file with the information she has in order to determine if the shops are part of the traditional area. If so, they deserve the MPs’ support but if the shops are not part of the traditional area, the MPs have nothing to do with the issue as it is a just commercial dispute that should be settled in court.

He added the committee also discussed the proposed amendments to the Private Sector Law, pointing out the present law includes a stipulation which makes citizens working in the private sector lose a part of their indemnity as it states the worker is given indemnity based on the Social Security Law. In case a citizen employed in the private sector resorts to the court, the judge will allow the employer to deduct the installments paid by the company to the Public Institution for Social Security from the indemnity of the employee. A number of amendments were done in 2017 and 2018 but they did not serve the purpose of the law which is to enable a national worker to obtain his full indemnity just like his expatriate counterpart, he said.

Disclosed

He disclosed the committee also discussed bills on reducing interest collected from employees due to receiving a portion of their pension in advance to be refunded in installments. He pointed out the government did not present alternatives to replace the articles it rejected even if it was given enough time to do so. He added the only minister who attended the meeting was Al-Aqeel and she was in a hurry due to her other commitments.

In another development, MP Riyad Al-Adasani has confirmed the formation of a committee to follow up issues raised in the grilling motion that he submitted against the former minister of interior such as the special expenditures, appointments and reshuffling based on favoritism. He clarified the grilling is valid as long as the violations are not addressed.

In addition, Al-Adsani had earlier uploaded part of a former MP’s television interview saying he received money from the prime minister to donate and distribute.

He disclosed the former MP intends to sue a number of citizens after filing a case against him. He affirmed support for these citizens, vowing that he will appear in court as a witness in their favor.

Al-Adsani stressed that the country enjoys a strong economy and there is no budget deficit, arguing the budget should be compared to the total income including the investment and oil revenues.

He explained the deficit was observed when the budget was compared only to oil revenues.

He also emphasized the importance of including the armament allocation to the State budget, not the Public Reserve Fund to avoid depleting the fund.