KUWAIT CITY, June 28: The National Assembly on Tuesday rejected the draft bills on increasing the salary of teachers and allowance of students.
Only 42 lawmakers voted in favor of both bills, which require 44 votes to pass. Parliament Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi started the session by accepting the request of some lawmakers to include the bills in the agenda. Prior to the session, several lawmakers threatened to walk out of the hall in case the assembly turns down the request.
However due to failure to obtain the required number of votes, the speaker announced the two bills will be presented for voting again in the next legislative term, during which only 33 votes are needed to approve the proposals.
After the voting, some teachers in the audience shouted at the MPs who voted against the bills, prompting the speaker to adjourn the session for 15 minutes. He also asked the teachers to leave the session hall.
It can be recalled that the Parliament approved these bills last week but the government decided otherwise; instead it approved the teachers’ bonus bill presented by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and instructed Education and Higher Education Minister Ahmad Al-Mulaifi to issue a decision on the students’ allowance.
 When the session resumed, the assembly continued its discussion on the state budget, which was rejected Monday by the Budget and Final Audit Committee due to the excessive increase in expenditure and the failure of various government institutions to implement the recommendations of the Audit Bureau regarding their budgets.
Committee Chairman MP Adnan AbdulSamad has been quoted as saying the proposed state budget for fiscal 2011/2012 amounted to KD 19.75 billion. “For the first time, the state budget reached almost KD 20 billion. I think this is crazy,” he added.
During the session, AbdulSamad disclosed the panel had 88 meetings to discuss the budget and final accounts, and each time they always find irregularities in the expenditure in line with the observations of the Audit Bureau.
“This year’s budget is the largest in the history of Kuwait. The government has proposed an increase of KD 1.773 billion to the original budget amounting to KD 17.900 billion. If the lawmakers approve this amount, we will bear the consequences, considering the state will spend KD 550 million for the salary increase of the military personnel and the KD 50 increment for public sector workers whose salaries are below KD 1,000,” AbdulSamad added.
AbdulSamad pointed out the government included the KD88 million allocated for the teachers’ bonus in the budget, in addition to KD 130 million Amiri grant, KD 478 million for the Public Authority for Social Security (PASS), and KD 204 million for the salary increase of cleaning works and other increments.
He warned the proposed budget, if approved, will have a negative impact on the society. He cited as an example the investment budget amounting to KD 491 million. He then stressed the need for cooperation between the government and the Parliament to revise the budget.
State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Ali Al-Rashed confirmed the government on Monday approved the teachers bonus and KD 50 salary increment bills with a budget of KD 550 million. He clarified only the teachers with outstanding work performance are entitled to the bonus.
He said the original budget for the teachers bonus was KD 350 million but the government has trimmed it down to KD 243 million.
MP Saleh Ashour argued the Kuwaiti economy is flourishing in terms of production but the problem is the improper distribution of wealth. “Due to this, we have to increase the budget every year, not to mention the approval of the proposed salary increments and students’ allowance.
Unfortunately, the country remains dependent on oil as the main source of income. If the price of oil in the global market falls to less than $90 per barrel, the government has only two options — reduce salaries or limit the budget.
The speaker postponed voting on the state budget and that of the Kuwait National Petroleum Corporation (KNPC) until Wednesday — the last session before the summer break. He also announced that the Budget Committee and the government will meet after Tuesday’s session to reach an agreement on the figures prior to voting the next day.
On the other hand, the speaker rejected the request of MP Dr Daifallah Buramiya to include the loan interest cancellation bill in the agenda for Tuesday’s session. He said the bill has been rejected by the Parliament and there is no way for the latter to resume discussions on the same proposal. He advised Buramiya to present a new draft bill.