Anti-corruption authority holds seminar
KUWAIT: Kuwait’s Public Anti-Corruption Authority organized a seminar at its headquarters in Shamiya Sunday evening to discuss Kuwait’s position in the international scene and the application of anti-corruption legislations.
“Despite the difficulties faced by the authority and the difficulties encountered in the reconstruction and the development of the new law, we have undertaken to carry out its technical duties related to receiving and processing financial disclosure data and receiving reports and complaints relating to corruption,” explained Abdulrahman Al-Namash, head of the authority.
The anti-corruption body is tasked with investigating incidents of corruption, wasting of public funds and other forms of fiscal malfeasance in the public sector. The authority, created by Law No. 2/2016 is authorized to investigate financial and asset disclosures and help improve transparency in Kuwait’s economy.
The authority has already referred several government officials to the public prosecution for a variety of alleged offenses including failure to disclose income and assets as well and questions over contracts and tenders. Acting Secretary General Dr Mohammed Abdul Rahman Bouzaber said that the authority will adopt the recommendations of the symposium and its sponsorship, pointing out that it does not face any obstacles at the technical level at the present time.
Bouzaber added that the authority received 4,081 financial approvals so far, for about 50 percent of the total number of subjects under the authority of about 8,000. He pointed out that the authority received 36 corruption reports to be considered. He added that whistle blowers providing real evidence and documents would be taken seriously and the information kept confidential.
The seminar was held under the patronage of Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad AlSabah, Minister of the Amiri Diwan, who also attended the seminar along with several lawmakers, members of the Kuwait Transparency Society and the Society for the Protection of Public Money.