Al-Rajaan extradition ‘ongoing’; Poet arrest hit

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KUWAIT CITY, July 6: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice and Minister of State for Nazaha Enhancement Abdullah Al-Rumi has responded to the queries of MP Abdullah Al-Turaiji, affirming that the concerned British Court approved on Nov 6, 2017 the request of the Kuwaiti judicial authority to extradite the fugitive – former Director of the Public Institution for Social Security (PIFSS) Fahd Al-Rajaan. He added the case was referred to the British Ministry of Foreign Affairs to issue the final decision on the extradition of Al-Rajaan.

Al-Rumi revealed that the Public Prosecution issued a decision for the Interpol to arrest Al- Rajaan, so the latter issued a red alert in this regard. However, Al-Turaiji sent more queries to the minister, demanding for additional information and transparency in this regard to prove that Kuwait is serious in arresting Al-Rajaan and to recover the stolen money. He asked about the Kuwaiti Institution in charge of following up the execution of the decision issued by the British court. He said Al-Rumi did not mention the steps taken since 2017, as the minister seemed contented in saying that the extradition process is ongoing. MPs Osama Al-Shaheen, Hamad Al-Matar, Abdulaziz Al-Saqaabi, Al-SaifiMubarak Al- Saifiand Mubarak Al-Hajraf submitted a bill to establish an independent public authority for the cooperative sector.

This authority will be responsible for cooperative societies and the the Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies, and it will be affiliated to the Ministry of Social Affairs. Al-Shaheen explained that the establishment of the authority is aimed at developing the cooperative sector, which has contributed to the development of national production and the economy for decades. He thanked the Development Committee formed by the Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies for its vital role in laying down the fundamentals of the proposed public authority. MP Mubarak Al-Arow submitted a bill to amend Law No. 25/1996 on the disclosure of commissions related to government contracts. The bill is aimed at expanding the monitoring of contracts in which the government is represented by companies where it owns at least 25 percent of the capital. The current law specifies the share of the government as at least 50 percent of the company’s capital to be covered by the law.

Proposal
Al-Arow affirmed his proposal will contribute to ongoing efforts to protect public funds. Meanwhile, MP Marzouq Al-Khalifa forwarded queries to Minister of Interior Sheikh Thamer Ali Al-Sabah about the recent attacks on securitymen, especially the murder of Abdulaziz Al-Rashedi. He wants to know if the securitymen are trained in self-defense like taekwondo, judo and streetfighting; if they have been instructed to shoot whoever tries to kill them; and if they are armed with self-defense equipment like electric shock and pepper spray to help them control the attackers. MP Adnan Abdulsamad also forwarded queries to Al-Rumi about the number of citizens who own more than one house in model residential areas — full or partial ownership, total number of these houses and total area. In another development, Abdulsamad asked Minister of State for Municipality and Housing Affairs and Urban Development Shaya Abdulrahman Al-Shaya about the rationale behind the decision of Kuwait Municipality to cancel the exhibition scheduled for June 3, 2021.

The Union of Kuwait Artists organized the exhibition to support the Palestinian cause. He was informed that the organizers committed to the health regulations, so he wants to know if the Municipality informed the organizers about any violation in order to address it before the issuance of the decision to cancel the event. Furthermore, MP Muhannad Al-Sayer disclosed that he attended the investigations conducted by the prosecution against his uncle — poet Jamal Al-Sayer. He said the prosecution charged Jamal with offending the Amiri entity and spreading lies through his posts in his Twitter account. He added he will wait for the decision of the prosecution regarding his uncle. Several MPs criticized the arrest of Jamal, including MP Shuaib Al-Muwaizri who pointed out that arresting a citizen for expressing his opinion proves “we are living in a police State.”

By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh Arab Times Staff

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