A REPORT published by Al-Qabas daily last Friday was a huge embarrassment for Kuwait, its people, the government and the Ministry of Health. According to the report, a health district director, who was appointed by the former health minister, proposed that public hospitals and clinics should serve Kuwaitis in the mornings and the expatriates in the evenings. The proposal was humiliating for honest Kuwaiti doctors like Adel Al-Khatrash, Abdullatif Al-Sahli, Furaida Al-Habeeb and Dalaal Al-Wad’ani, among others. It also reminded us of the apartheid era or the abhorred discriminatory politics in South Africa. This action will definitely put Kuwait on the human rights blacklist. Actually, it is disastrous and hilarious at the same time!
We want the director to tell us what the public clinics and hospitals will do in case a Kuwaiti falls sick in the evening - the period assigned for foreigners? Will they tell the Kuwaiti to come back tomorrow morning? If a foreigner falls sick in the morning, should he come back in the evening?

Besides the embarrassing proposal, our health minister hides information from the public through media gags or blackouts and highlights his foreign trips to make us happy reading news on the signing of agreements with foreign hospitals like those in Germany for the treatment of Kuwaitis. This clearly reflects the ingenuity of our government. It would have been better if the minister authorized the director of Kuwait’s health office in Germany to sign the agreement so that he can focus on the local health sector, especially since this director claims to be the relative of one of the leaders of Kuwaiti street movements.
The National Assembly members, who are controlled by the government, know the minister is not afraid of grilling, while the judicious government was threatened with the ‘no cooperation’ card when the interpellation requests against two ministers were presented. This has prompted the Assembly to postpone the interpellations until the next term in order to douse tension.

We now ask Al-Haifi to channel his energies towards the improvement of health services in the country, completion of under construction hospitals, and laying down a comprehensive plan for building new hospitals to cover the needs of the growing population rather than implementing the preposterous proposal of the health district director. News on these activities will gladden our hearts more than the signing of agreements in Germany. Once we have hospitals on par with international standards, doctors from Germany will come here to perform surgeries in our local hospitals; making us save millions of dinars. The minister must also impose certain restrictions to eliminate the embarrassing behaviors of some ministry employees.
Surprisingly, those who just discovered human rights principles along Al-Sahafa Street, the civil societies and former politicians have remained silent over the issue. They have not condemned nor protested against the discriminatory proposal which is unacceptable by all standards!

Email: Ali-albaghli@hotmail.com

By Ali Ahmed Al-Baghli - Former Oil Minister