Cassation Court rejects former MP Al-Dahoum’s three appeals
Authority eyed for evaluating performance of public investment
KUWAIT CITY, June 16: The Court of Cassation, chaired by Judge Adel Buresli, rejected the three appeals filed by former MP Bader AlDahoum against the decision of the Constitutional Court to nullify his parliamentary membership.
Al Dahoum’s parliamentary membership was nullified because he was previously convicted of offending the Amiri entity; hence, he is not allowed to participate in the elections both as a candidate and a voter.
Consequently, MP Obaid Al-Wasmi will remain in his post until the end of the current parliamentary term. He achieved landslide victory in the supplementary elections in May with about 43,000 votes.
Meanwhile, MPs Adnan Abdulsamad, Al-Saifi Mubarak Al-Saifi, Ali Al-Qattan, Ahmed Al-Hamad and Fares Al-Otaibi submitted a bill on the establishment of a public authority for evaluating and developing the performance of public investment.
According to the bill, the authority will be affiliated to the Finance Ministry but the latter will not interfere in the technical decisions of the authority whose functions are as follows:
· Provision of a suitable environment for investment by providing the necessary information and consultations,
· Specify the conditions for the investment of foreign currencies in global capital markets,
· Lay down the rules in accepting investment opportunities,
· Present monthly reports including the recommendations, decisions and consultations to guide public Investment institutions.
The authority’s Board of Directors shall consist of 12 members from the Justice, Finance, Commerce and Industry ministries; Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Union of Investment Companies and Central Bank of Kuwait.
Investment entities covered by this bill must submit quarterly, semi-annual and annual reports to the authority.
Reports
The authority will present regular reports on the performance of public investment institutions to the Council of Ministers, National Assembly and State Audit Bureau (SAB).
On the other hand, MP Osama Al-Menawer criticized Central Bank of Kuwait Governor Muhammad Al-Hashel for warning the banks about the potential difficulties in collecting payments for loans granted to oil companies; although he agreed with the minister when the latter said the coming period will witness decline in the demand for oil because of some weather changes.
Al-Menawer clarified he
believes that the governor has no intention to cause problems for the oil sector, which is considered the backbone of the economy; but such a statement will lead to negative consequences in terms of financing oil enterprises.
He wondered why Al-Hashel made such a statement although he did not take action regarding the money laundering issue. He called on Minister of Finance and Minister of State for Economic and Investment Affairs Khalifa Hamada to take the necessary action regarding the statement of Al-Hashel and prevent the negative consequences of such a statement.
Moreover, MP Saad Al-Khanfour forwarded queries to Minister of Awqaf and Isamic Affairs Essa Al-Kandari about the conditions for nationals who applied for the Imam and Muezzin posts as he found out that most of these nationals are no longer interested in these jobs due to the unreasonable conditions.
He asked about the current number of Kuwaiti Imams and Muezzins compared to their expatriate counterparts. He requested for copies of job advertisements for these posts in the last 10 years, conditions that the applicants must fulfill, and correspondences between the ministry and Civil Service Commission.
He inquired if the ministry requested for more privileges to offer to citizens applying for these two jobs as a way to encourage them to engage in such work and if the ministry intents to hire Kuwaiti retirees for the two jobs.
In view of the decline of Kuwait University’s ranking -1,001st among global universities, 28th among Arab universities and third among local universities; MP Marzouq Al-Khalifa forwarded queries to Minister of Oil and Minister of Higher Education Dr Muhammad Al-Fares.
He asked if Al-Fares conducted a study to determine the factors leading to the decline in the ranking of Kuwait University. If yes, he demanded for a copy of the study.
He wants to know the steps taken to improve the ranking of Kuwait University and if reducing the number of students in every department is a positive factor in the ranking. If yes, he asked for the reason why this step has not been taken until now.
He inquired if the delayed payment of incentive for members of scientific international committees which evaluate higher studies programs negatively affected the reputation of Kuwait University internationally, if the budget of Kuwait University has been reduced over the last 10 years, and if this reduction led to the decline in its ranking.
In addition, the Education, Culture and Guidance Affairs Committee recently discussed the classification of Kuwait University.
Committee Chairman MP Hamad Al-Matar confirmed the attendance of the higher education minister who also serves as secretary general at the university, as well as the representatives of several academic institutions and lecturers.
He explained the QS ranking has a local classification in which the university was ranked first.
He said the committee received a report from acting University President Dr Bader Al- Bedaiwi on the criteria adopted by QS and other ranking institutions. He pointed out the shortcomings on the part of the university and the government. He asserted it is unacceptable that no committee follows up and provides ranking institutions with accurate data. He affirmed an agreement has been reached to form this committee which will consist of competent and experienced members such as Professor Tariq Al-Duwaisan.
Ranking
He cited some factors which affected the ranking of the university; clarifying that courses in Arabic such as those offered by the College of Islamic Sharia, Faculty of Arts, College of Law and the like are not considered by QS. He went on to say that even Business Administration courses are not considered if they are in Arabic.
He suggested that the only solution is to form a special unit or section tasked to translate the courses and researches from Arabic to English and then send them to QS ranking.
He pointed out the loophole in Law No. 76/2019 which disrupts the development of the university. He asserted that it is now time for the university to have an independent budget as this will lead to administrative and financial autonomy.
He stressed that despite the recent ranking of the university, its graduates are well educated and the university is accredited in most countries around the world.
He added the evaluation of QS is done two years earlier than the date of publication, so he expects the ranking for next year to be the same as this year. For instance, if QS gathers data in 2022; the ranking will be announced in 2024, he said.
He then praised the positive response and commitment of the minister in taking the necessary steps towards the advancement of the university.