‘Govt, parliamentarians must share blame for the state of affairs’
“‘We buried it together’ is an Egyptian proverb when more than one party participates in a certain crime, then one of the parties disavows it, and the other side replies ‘We buried it together’. Yesterday, I remembered this proverb while reading the reactions of some current and former MPs and some populists to the statement of Finance Minister about the current budget deficit, in which he expected the cumulative budget deficit to reach 55 billion dinars after five years. They attacked and blamed the government alone for the current situation,” columnist Ahmad Baqer wrote for Al-Jarida daily.
“There is no doubt the government is the first responsible party according to the text of the Constitution that made it the one who dominates the interests of the state, Article (123). Certainly, some previous governments had caused catastrophic errors to the budget, but they are not the only ones responsible because many of the big expenditures were approved by laws or pressure from members of the National Assembly as well.
“Big expenditures here do not mean the necessary expenditures such as the costs of liberation, subsistence, war, and the interests of the citizens. Rather it means the enormous, unnecessary expenditures that the government agreed to upon demands from many members of the Assembly during the past years.
“Have we forgotten how some deputies denied there was deficit just because they wanted to pass spending laws under the pretext of solvency? By that they mean the future generations’ fund that many members refuse to withdraw from? Didn’t many members oppose every attempt at economic reform despite the fact that the Assembly could have approved what would benefit the country and lead to reforming the budget while rejecting what affects the ordinary citizen? Did the last Parliament not neglect the strategic alternative draft law despite its presentation in its first session? Did not the government and some members support what is known as the tourism medical treatment that cost more than one billion dinars in a short period?
“The National Assembly could have made the maximum parliamentary effort to increase and diversify revenues and stop the behavior of the government and proposal of some MPs that have increased budget expenditures (with government decisions) from 4 billion in 2000 to 23 billion Kuwaiti dinars now.
“Today, the vision of those who had warned of the current state of affairs – a result of actions of some previous governments and some parliamentarians – has come true. So both sides are partners in the crime. So both the government and the other party must share the blame, not the government alone.”
“Perhaps the next government is one of the longest in terms of time taken for formation and we hope this government will take us out of the whirlpool of affairs and give hope for reform and achievement, relieve us of at least some of our public concerns and come out of this dark tunnel in which we have been stuck for a long time and disturbed even our democratic life, and the Constitution which we so much cherish,” columnist Yousef Al-Shihab wrote for AlQabas daily.
“Previous and even current governments have hindered more than one path to reform and development, because they were unable to set a clear-cut policy through which the country’s aspiration for development and effective management could be achieved. If these were available or at least part of them, we would not have seen the abuse of public funds and forgery of nationality and Kuwaiti passport through bribe accepted by those of weak conscience at the expense of this country and the society only to see the thieves merry-making abroad.
“All this government laxity in taking decisions and serious accountability has brought us to where we are today, and unfortunately with the blessings of ministers, some of whom view the position as an honor rather than an assignment.
“Yes, some deputies obstruct the government performance, but we also cannot blame everyone but rather some ministers who bow to pressures from MPs to please them for fear of being interrogated contrary to some other ministers who have the ability to confront because of their conviction of their position and insist on their confrontation even if it leads to their resignation.
“It is not difficult to form a salvation government comprising salvation ministers as well. I think that this will only be achieved if the ministers are chosen according to the correct approach that is far from courtesy, pressure and mediators, all of which have made many ministers not commensurate with their role and unfortunately this is what forces us to play the game of musical chairs, as our problems continue to increase until we lose the insight of managing our affairs.”
“In America, stock experts train a monkey to throw arrows at a large board on which the shares of listed companies are displayed on the stock exchange, and the names of the companies that are hit by the monkey are recorded and then compared at the end of the month with the prices of the shares of companies recommended by senior specialists. It has been discovered that the monkey’s options are sometimes superior to its validity more than the options of the specialists, which proves the fact that there is a law of chance or un-examined possibilities that is equivalent in some cases to the considered options,” columnist Sami Al-Nisf wrote for Annahar daily.
“So it was surprising, within that given theory, how many wrong decisions we have lived through during previous eras, as the chances of error are supposed to equal the chances of right but the truth shows that we used to make mistakes in almost every major decision and then pay heavy prices for that mistake unnecessarily.
“We have tried the path of mistakes, so why do we continue with it, and why are we still listening to the same counselors and assign them in positions of responsibility despite their failure? Why do we keep away the creative people of accomplishment and we do not see that there is a high price to be paid for that?
“Lastly, Kuwait has become much more than relying on personal knowledge to fill the leadership positions. We need information centers, think tanks and committees to support government choices.”
“No matter what election is held and no matter how governments are formed, changed, resign and return, we will always come back to the first square of power struggle if the electoral system does not change. We will return to the same struggle for influence that has continued for decades,” columnist Za’ar Al-Rasheedi wrote for Al-Anba daily.
“Changing the electoral system will not change the reality of the conflict, but it will at least change the rules of the game, reduce the number of contestants in controlling the constitutional tools and lessen the impact of the interference of the contestants.
“There is no other solution than changing the electoral system which, by the way, is not politically costly. Yes, it may be a disadvantage if it is approved through a decree of necessity as it will be in a form close to the government’s political desire. However, there is hope that it will pass through the current National Assembly, thus, will be a balanced electoral system, involving both the government and Assembly.
“If the political election law and the constituencies are passed through the Assembly, I think it will be a political beginning for everyone. It also means opening a new page of parliamentary work, ending the boycott, changing the compass of political conflict, and limiting political interference from outside the Assembly.”
KUWAIT CITY, March 3: The Permanent Secretary for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Sir Philip Barton, visited Kuwait for a series of virtual meetings. Sir Philip, the UK’s most senior diplomat, met with Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials, hosted a roundtable on climate change and launched a year-long campaign focusing on UK expertise in innovation, research and technology.
Sir Philip Barton visited Kuwait for a virtual visit on Tuesday, March 2. After engaging with British Embassy staff, Sir Philip met with Assistant Foreign Minister Waleed Al Khobeizi, where they discussed Kuwait’s leading role in resolving the GCC dispute, bilateral co-operation and regional issues.
At a roundtable meeting, Sir Philip discussed the upcoming COP26 UN climate change talks which will be held in Glasgow in the United Kingdom in November. Sir Philip highlighted the UK’s commitment to tackling climate change both through domestic policy and in international fora. Sir Philip heard from [officials] at the Environment Public Authority and the Supreme Council of Planning & Development’s Dr Khaled Mahdi. Also at the meeting were the Hideko Hadzialic, Resident Representative for the UNDP and Ghassan Al Khoja, regional representative for the World Bank.
The visit concluded with the launch of the British Embassy’s Innotech 2021 campaign, which showcases UK excellence in scientific research, collaboration and innovation. The launch included details of the logo, social media tags (#InnotechUKQ8) and schedule for events, details of which will be shared during the coming year.
Also, Sir Philip met with Dr Samira Al Omar, Director General of the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research and and Dr Khaled Al Begain, President of the Kuwait College for Science and Technology.
On conclusion of his visit Sir Philip said “I was delighted to visit Kuwait virtually just after Kuwaitis marked the 60th Anniversary of Independence and the 30th Anniversary of Liberation. It was inspiring to hear the vital work being done by my colleagues at the British Embassy to advance the UK-Kuwaiti partnership.
“My discussions today showed we share a determination to tackle regional and global challenges such as climate change and security, as well as providing an exciting glimpse of future scientific collaboration through the Innotech 2021 campaign.”
United Airlines is expanding its order of Boeing 737 Max airplanes and taking some deliveries sooner as it ramps up for an anticipated increase in travel demand.
Chief Operating Officer Andrew Nocella said in a memo on Monday that the company placed an order for 25 new 737 Max aircraft for delivery in 2023. United has also moved up delivery of 40 previously ordered 737 Max planes to next year and five 737 Max to 2023. That’s in addition to the 24 737 Max aircraft the company is already set to receive in 2023.
“We’ve now put ourselves in a position to not only survive the crisis, but thrive as an airline, elevate our product for customers and emerge as a stronger, better United Airlines,” Nocella wrote.
While United announced furloughs last week, Nocella said that the airline must place orders more than a year before taking delivery of aircraft.
“And as the end of the pandemic nears and vaccines continue to roll out, today’s fleet announcement helps position us to meet the demand we expect to see in 2022 and 2023 and puts us on a path toward more opportunities for our employees in the future,” he said.
The 737 Max has been under heavy scrutiny for a while. Aviation authorities around the world grounded 737 Max aircraft in March 2019 following deadly crashes involving the plane model in Ethiopia and off the coast of Indonesia, which occurred within five months of each other. (AP)
In a deal to jettison itself from under bankruptcy protection, Hertz said Tuesday that it may sell a controlling stake in the company to two investment firms for $4.2 billion.
Knighthead Capital Management and Certares Opportunities will have the chance to buy the entire reorganized car rental company, but no less than a majority of its shares, Hertz Global Holdings Inc. said.
Hertz was among the first major corporations to be felled by the pandemic last year as infections surged and shut down travel on a global scale for both companies and vacationers.
Hertz filed for bankruptcy protection in May 2020. Sales growth went into negative territory almost immediately, but the 100-year-old company was already experiencing some turmoil. When it entered bankruptcy protection, Hertz named its fourth chief executive in six years.
However, with the rollout of a suite of vaccines for the coronavirus, pent up wanderlust is expected to explode. Investors are pouring money into almost any company that caters to travelers. Share of major airlines are up between 20% and 40% this year. Cruise, lines, hotels and resorts are getting similar interest.
Hertz, based in Estero, Florida, said the proposed investment, combined with a new $1 billion first-lien financing, a new $1.5 billion revolving credit facility, and a new asset-backed securitization facility to finance its U.S. vehicle fleet, will provide the funding needed for the company to complete its restructuring and emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early to mid summer. (AP)