“THE parliamentary interpellation that has been filed against the Minister of Information is not different from a series of interpellations which we have witnessed since the Seventh Legislative Term of 1992 by the consecutive national assemblies, particularly in terms of their association and dramatics in spite of certain changes in political alliances and government attitudes,” columnist and MP Dr Hasan Johar wrote for Aljarida daily Friday.

“In other words, we can say the common factor during all interpellations was that the nation was transformed into a big cinema hall with a three-dimensional screen where everybody played his/her part in a movie amid acute disparity in opinions and viewpoints with these differences even among members of one family, Diwaniya or even a political current.

“Needless to say this political panorama may reflect the popular reaction to local issues and events and this signifies the democratic sense and the close relationship between the decision-makers and the public.
“In spite of the above, we suggest the panorama embodies a strong sensitivity in dealing with various cultural and political concepts.

“Meanwhile, we believe the small size of our community and direct and daily contacts between senior government officials and MPs on one hand and the public on the other hand in addition to the satellite channels and electronic websites are responsible for the reactions in question.
“Having said this, the political state directly or indirectly affects the decisions of some of the MPs. In other words, the decisions of these MPs do not always reflect their personal convictions, or their diagnosis of the pertinent issues.
“In this context, we say these MPs are subject to pressures from their supporters and these pressures revolve around the logic that ‘the affairs in the country have been deteriorating and you have foremost to look after your interests and the interest of your coteries and supporters’.

“It goes without saying this type of pressure is not confined to one group of MPs. In others words, any MP who feels his interests lie in casting a vote in favor of the grilled minister will not hesitate to do so and those who feel their interests lie in voting against the minister will not hesitate to do likewise.
“With regard to the criteria that defines the parliamentary attitudes starts with the mood of an MP, the nature of the relationship between him/her and the concerned minister or it may even depend on whether or not the minister has passed the transactions of the MP. In fine the parliamentary attitudes are sometimes subjected to certain political tactics and equations.”

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“Irrespective of the outcome of the no-confidence motion that was filed recently against the Minister of Information, it is needless to say the angles of this interpellation are weak to such an extent this interpellation has been filed just because the relevant MPs were keen to keep their promise to their voters to grill the minister and this means these MPs have nothing to do with politics,” columnist Bader Borisly wrote for Annahar daily Friday.
“Speaking of MP Ali Al-Deqbasi we say all of us agree the man is very polite, decent and enjoys good morals. Such being the case, I am certain his supporters did not want to see him in this situation particularly since we know that Deqbasi is a professional journalist.

“Anyone who has listened to the interpellation of Deqbasi against the Minister of Information would have observed that the MP has repeatedly referred to a televised interview with the Minister of Information before he was appointed minister and this means the interpellation has a tinge of personal disputes and as a matter of fact the interpellation does not hold water to such an extent this grilling can no longer be termed as a parliamentary interpellation.
“In other words, the interview in question has been transformed into a topic of grilling and we say this grilling has nothing to do with national unity as it has been said before by the relevant MPs.
“With regard to the observation given by MP Musallam Al-Barrak on the sidelines of the Al-Deqbasi’s interpellation, he was hoping to be in the place of Al-Deqbasi as he sees himself more capable of shuffling the pack of cards than his colleague. This was aimed at provoking the Speaker of the National Assembly and violating all National Assembly by-laws and regulations.”

“Once again, the government will find itself confronting the MPs. However, although it looks like this confrontation has a democratic coating it is needless to say its essence is rife both with objectivity and personal factors and a mix between the right and the prejudice in using this right,” columnist AbdulAziz Al-Towaijri wrote for Al-Qabas daily Friday.
“While we appreciate the notion that the parliamentary interpellation is a constitutional tool with due respect to the MPs who use this tool it is unfortunate to say we have observed how most parliamentary interpellations were motivated either by tribal, intellectual or partisan objectives.
“Such being the case, the government on most occasions finds itself playing certain political cards during parliamentary interpellations.
“In other words, the government uses its relations with the MPs to obtain necessary support and this behavior has proved costly because the government may find it reluctant to submit to certain surrenders or may be even involved in negotiations with other parties over substandard issues and waste the time of the country.
“However, some observers say the government attitude in dealing with the parliamentary interpellation that has been filed against the Minister of Information is different than earlier interpellations.
“In other words, people say the government was rising to the occasion and this means the Minister must throw in the towel to put out the fire, particularly since we know MP Al-Deqbasi was quoted as saying ‘this interpellation is aimed at extinguishing the informational fire’. Although, we support Al-Deqbasi’s logic, we hope the fire has not yet been started.”

“The Arab and Muslim countries were subjected to some pressures for changing their curriculums in general and religious in particular post and prior to the Sept 11, 2001 events,” columnist and former Minister of State for National Assembly Affairs AbdulHadi Al-Saleh wrote for Al-Anba daily Friday.
“However, the pressures were put on the pretext these curricula promote hatred and violence against non-Muslims and foster religious extremism. In this context, we believe these countries put the pressure in question in view of enthusiasm for the religion shown by the powers who opposed Islam and religious extremism.
“Anyway, many Arab countries responded to the pressures in question. Egypt, for instance, during the reign of the former Minister of Education Hussain Kamel Bahauddin, as some battles fought by Prophet Mohammed, Peace Be Upon Him, were deleted because the minister felt these may serve extremism and support the evidence of those who oppose normalization of ties with the Jews.
“In Jordan, one official who was supervising the Islamic curricula in an apparent reference to his country’s response to the request to change the curriculum, was quoted as saying ‘one should always project the peaceful solution as better than military solution’. However, the statement in question was issued in the wake of exchange in diplomatic relations between Jordan and Israel in June 2005.
“In Morocco, one Quranic text related to women’s costume was deleted from the curricula of Islamic education. In Pakistani schools they had started teaching what they called the ‘soft Jihad’. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, one official at the Ministry of Education revealed some changes were incorporated into religious curricula.
“In Kuwait after the tug of war between parliamentarians and forces of journalism concerning the country’s religious curricula, the Ministry of Education, issued a decision to form a committee to study the country’s books on religious education.
“However, we hope these books will be revised and the text which calls ‘others’ infidel has been deleted.”

“MPs are still continuing to submit grilling requests against ministers despite realizing that more the number of interpellations, the lesser their importance,” columnist Abdullah Abbas Buwair wrote for Alam Al-Youm daily.
“Instead of filing a grilling against Minister of Information Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah, we wish the MPs had submitted a list of questions to the minister and given him adequate time to respond.
“We are not saying MPs should give up their right to expose wrongdoing, but it has been noticed that many MPs are exploiting the tool arbitrarily to achieve their personal goals with little regard to public welfare.
“The interpellations have become fiercer and it seems the MPs are using the tool to intimidate ministers and hinder their work, which, in turn, will affect the development of our country. Hence, we request our dear MPs to follow the instructions of HH the Amir in this regard and let ministers do their job.”

“In no other country, can an expatriate take as many risks and so boldly break the law as he can in Kuwait. The expatriate here is the ‘Sultan,’ and can break the law as many times as he wants. The same expatriate will behave very differently in his own home country for fear of security authorities there,” columnist Talal Al-Saeed wrote for Al-Seyassah daily.
“The expatriate will not dare to even think about breaking law in his country, but here in Kuwait, he will intentionally do so.
“Hence, this phenomenon needs to be studied and addressed as the number of problems and crimes are increasing and are becoming more serious.”

“The Islamic system calls for the development of the whole society in general and not just individuals,” columnist Mona Fahad Al-Wohaib wrote for Arrouiah daily.
“This means there is no difference between a man and a woman in terms of rights and duties. If at all there is a difference, it is related to women’s decency and their adherence to Islamic hijab in presence of strangers.
“The equality between man and woman in terms of rights and responsibilities does not imply our acceptance to melt the boundaries that define the relationships between the two genders. If boundaries are not respected, it will lead to intermingling without considering Islamic standards. So our religion is moderate; it is not too strict and not too loose either.”

“Former British prime minister Tony Blair submitted a report and a study on the financial status of Kuwait until 2035,” columnist Mishref Bin Eqab wrote for Al-Shahid daily.
“There is no doubt that the report includes valuable recommendations; however, with due respect and appreciation, we would like to point out that most issues related to development and citizens are handled by the government with the help of some sectors.
“Some of these sectors are external, for example, the World Bank and some other international institutes. Kuwait is one of the few countries that coordinates with external bodies in this regard. It is strange because the government has ministers who have specialized in finance, commerce, development and education. Also, the government has numerous committees to handle such issues. Unfortunately, their recommendations remain locked in drawers and are never implemented.”

“It has been my wish to comment on the vision Blair had for the country and its citizens, but I was strained by statements and interviews some Sheikhs, from whom we have received contrary information, granted on the reality, and their opposition to possibilities,” Fahad Al-Bassam wrote for Al-Rai daily.
“Those statements were issued in reaction to their positions, considering some of them have retrogressed, with many others revealing their hidden ideas. However, we only wished to protect our image and the remnant of our hopes. Anybody who can read between the lines will discover the connection between these statements and Blair’s projections.
“Sheikh Salman Al-Hammoud reverted 180 degrees from his previous statements in his congratulatory message for constitutional governance. He later contradicted the statements in some interviews. For this reason, he has proven us wrong for trusting his words, while Sheikh Ahmad Al-Sabah Al-Salem, who should have maintained his character as less vocal, justified dual citizenship, and argued it is not against patriotism”.

“In a recent interview, Governor of the UAE Central Bank affirmed his country was against unification of the GCC currency, while Kuwait still hopes for this unification and has urged UAE to change its position,” Hassan Ali Karam wrote for Al-Watan Arabic daily.
“It seems the name ‘Kuwaiti’ connotes passion, ignoring the fact that passion is not the right standard to realize interests, profits and losses. The UAE nationals must have realized that unification of the currency does not serve any positive purpose for their economy, after overcoming the differences on the likely location of the headquarters of GCC Central Bank. The people of Oman have also been standing aloof for the success or failure of the GCC currency unification proposal.
“Nonetheless, Kuwait is right to strive for the success of the proposal, for the reason that the country is currently the leader of the regional body, and it must ensure the success of the proposal and many more during its tenure. However, this should not be achieved with undue appeals, but discussions based on mutual interests. The unification of currency is not a mere passing issue, and it should not be treated in a shabby manner.”

“For a while, the Zionists could not dare attack our relatives in Palestine, until the Arab nations and those in the Gulf went into a slight slumber. We have since been witnesses to fierce attacks by the heinous enemy, following the complete turn of events,” Hassan Mohammed Al-Ansari wrote for Al-Dar daily.
“Unfortunately, the enemy has begun underestimating us, and it is not a matter of being in slumber, or being unaware of the recent incidents. The enemy is expanding its colony, while launching acts of destruction against innocent civilians.
“I am perplexed by the turn of events, and how far we’ve ignored the issue, which compels me to call on the children of stones, who brought down the dignity of our enemies, to wake up the Arab nation so that it can embrace its honor once more”.

— Complied by Zaki Taleb