Amir opens new Assembly building
SPEAKERS LAUD DEMOCRATIC TRADITIONS OF KUWAIT Nod to naturalization
KUWAIT CITY, May 24: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah patronized and attended on Tuesday the opening ceremony of the new Sabah Al-Ahmad building at the National Assembly.
His Highness the Amir was received upon arrival by National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim and members of Parliament Office where he unveiled the memorial of the building.
The ceremony was also attended by His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, senior sheikhs, His Highness Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Mohammad Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Minister of the Amiri Diwan Affairs Sheikh Ali Jarrah AlSabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Khalid Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, President of the Constitutional Court and Head of the Cassation Court Justice Yousef Jassem Al-Mutawa’a, and senior state officials.
The ceremony started with the national anthem, followed by the recitation of Holly Quran verses, and a documentary on the new Sabah Al-Ahmad building was aired.
In his speech, Al-Ghanim expressed his gratitude to His Highness the Amir for sponsoring and attending the inauguration ceremony of the building, which includes offices for MPs and
vital facilities to help National Assembly carry out its duties and messages.
“The building has been named after Your Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, just to tell next generations that Sabah Al-Ahmad was one of the founding fathers who, along with some men, drew up the country’s constitution.
“The building has been named after Your Highness to tell them, generations, that it was Sabah Al-Ahmad who established the principles of consultation and democracy, and of respecting constitutional institutions at a time when some nations of our region were suffering from difficult conditions, terrorism and conflicts,” Al-Ghanim said.
“Your Highness has been keen on supporting the rights of citizens, and making a consensus when legislative and executive authorities get engaged in differences,” he noted.
At the end of his speech, Al-Ghanim wished Kuwait further progress, prosperity and stability, and His Highness the Amir good health.
Furthermore, a documentary on His Highness the Amir was shown. His Highness the Amir honored those who produced the documentary.
Finally, memorial souvenirs were presented to His Highness the Amir and to His Highness the Crown Prince.
Meanwhile, the Parliament approved a bill on determining the number of citizenship applicants who will be naturalized this year in its second deliberation on Tuesday with 44 votes in favor and six against.
Article One of the bill states that in accordance with the report of the Defense and Interior Affairs Committee, the number of those who will be granted Kuwaiti nationality in 2016 shall be determined as per clause (iii) of Article Five of Amiri Decree number 15/1985 which stipulates granting citizenship to not more than 4,000 people.
Article Two mandates the Prime Minister and ministers to implement this law from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.
Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Mohamed Khalid Al-Hamad Al-Sabah thanked the Parliament for passing the bill, hoping it will be implemented this year.
The Parliament also approved in its second deliberation the proposal to amend decree number 40/1998 on regulating the work of experts with 42 votes in favor and seven against.
The amended decree states that “a public administration for experts shall consist of the chief, assistant undersecretary, deputy chief or more with the ranks of director and deputy chosen among the experts whose rank shall not be less than that of the chief expert. The administration shall be under the Ministry of Justice and the organizational structure will be formed in accordance with the decision of the Civil Service Commission (CSC).
Moreover, the Parliament approved the request of the Public Prosecution to lift the immunity of MP Abdul Hameed Dashti in two State security cases filed against him with 45 votes in favor.
In another development, the new building for lawmakers, which is adjacent to the Parliament, was inaugurated Tuesday under the patronage of his Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah who toured the building and looked into its unique facilities. Furthermore, MP Faisal Al-Duwaisan asked the Ministry of Information to enforce the Press and Publications Law on everyone. This came after the ministry’s alleged failure to enforce the law on a local newspaper which published a statement that was later proven false by the Ministry of Interior.
He cited Article 17 of the Press and Publications Law stipulating that the editor-in-chief should verify any information prior to publication. In case of erroneous news, the editor-in-chief should publish, free of charge, the correction or denial by the concerned ministry, authority or other government agencies and any legal or natural person whose name was mentioned or referred to in the publication, in the same location with the same characters and size of the disputed news.
He urged the Information Ministry to take the necessary action immediately as the report has been proven false, considering the newspaper violated the law since it published the correction on the lower right corner of page 12.
He then submitted queries to the ministry regarding the action taken against the newspaper, if any and the number of related cases referred to the ministry.
In another development, the National Assembly agreed to lift the immunity of Member of Parliament Dr Abdulhamid Dashti in two state security cases Nos 12/2016 and 14/2016. Forty five out of a total of 51 members voted for the immunity lifting motion.