KUWAIT CITY, Jan 4: Parliament Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi has reiterated calls for approval of the ‘Defaulters Fund’ to help Kuwaitis, who can no longer pay their debts.
This came a day before the parliamentary session slated for Tuesday to discuss the loans purchase proposal. Al-Khorafi affirmed some MPs, in cooperation with the government, have amended some stipulations in the fund as this is the best option, especially since the government had earlier announced its refusal to support the report of the Financial Committee that was approved in the previous session.
Hoping the bill will be finalized on Tuesday, Al-Khorafi said he referred the remarks of the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) and the proposed amendments to the Financial Committee. He did not discount the possibility that the government will refer the draft bill back to the Parliament in case it is approved during Tuesday’s session. The government has rejected the Financial Committee report, saying it cannot be implemented as it is flawed. The bill needs at least 44 votes, which is not possible, so it will be carried over to the next legislative round, prolonging the agony of debtors.
In the meantime, MP Salem Namlan has stressed the need to finalize the issue by working on the proposal of MPs to cancel the interest and reschedule payment of loans. He asked the government to take full responsibility, since it has ignored the violations committed by banks which enticed citizens to obtain loans with high interest.
MP Dr Daifallah Buramiya looks forward to the approval of the loans purchase proposal in its second reading on Tuesday. He clarified the bill needs the votes of half of the members plus one. He warned the government against playing with this issue by trying to push for some amendments to block the issuance of legislations aimed at protecting the welfare of citizens.
On the possibility of referring the bill to the Constitutional Court, Buramiya believes the MPs will never consider such a step as the issue is not under the jurisdiction of this court.
Meanwhile, the parliamentary Financial and Economic Affairs Committee on Monday unanimously approved the government development plan and amendments to the loans purchase proposal.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Committee Chairman MP Dr Yousef Al-Zalzalah said the panel has finalized discussions on the state’s strategic plan and the Higher Planning Council has responded to all the comments of lawmakers in this regard.
Al-Zalzalah added the panel approved several proposed amendments, including specification of the general policy in ministries and other government departments, requiring the government to present its annual plan in line with the budget, and the mega oil projects should be given to the stock and specialized companies.
On the amendments to the loans purchase draft bill, Al-Zalzalah revealed the committee received two amendments — from the Popular Labor Bloc and MP Saifi Al-Saifi.
 He said the first proposal deals with cases filed against the borrowers and this was included in the current bill , while the second proposal prohibits certain groups from benefiting from the bill like ministers and board chairpersons of companies or institutions in which the state own 25 percent or more shares.
Al-Zalzalah confirmed the committee unanimously approved the second proposal and included it in Article 12 of the bill, adding the committee will present the supplementary report to the Parliament Tuesday.