Govt urged to respect the parliamentary panels & decisions of National Assembly

‘Immediately repair rain-hit roads, compensate citizens’

By Ahmed Al-Naqeeb

KUWAIT CITY, Feb 14: The parliamentary Petitions and Complaints Committee, represented by MP Mubarak Al-Hajraf, has called on the government to respect parliamentary committees and decisions of the National Assembly while demanding that the government should be represented by a minister or undersecretary during committee meetings.

He pointed out his committee is the only parliamentary committee covered by the Constitution and internal regulations of the Assembly – a manifestation of its importance as a platform for the public to voice their concerns. “This is a testament to the will of the founding legislators on solving issues concerning the public through the Assembly,” he asserted.

He disclosed the committee submitted a request to the Assembly on March 20, 2018 for the government to be represented by ministers or undersecretaries in committee meetings. Despite the approval of the request, the government neither attends nor sends representatives to committee meetings. He then called on the Assembly speaker to address the issue, adding that the committee intends to forward a letter to the Assembly to reiterate the significance of the matter.

Furthermore, MP Khaleel Abdullah urged the government to immediately repair roads damaged by the flood and compensate citizens harmed by the crisis. He pointed out it has been three months since the country witnessed flooding but nothing has been done till now.

He told reporters that it is unacceptable for the public to continue suffering due to the aftermath of the flood, particularly the loose gravel which has been damaging vehicles such that motorists spent huge sums for repairs.

He added he had earlier submitted a parliamentary query on this issue, stressing that it should not take this long to repave roads for a rich country like Kuwait.