Dashti vows legal battle to stay in poll race

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 8: Following the Court of Appeals’ decision to reject his parliamentary candidacy, former MP Abdel Hameed Dashti announced his plan to submit a petition against the decision to the Court of Cassation on Wednesday.

Dashti took to Twitter Tuesday after the higher court overturned the decision of the First Instance Court that accepted Dashti’s candidacy which was filed by his son on his behalf, saying his legal battle will continue until he gets his constitutional rights. He pointed out, “As we respected the lower court’s decision to accept my candidacy for the upcoming election through proxy, we respect the higher court’s decision as well and we will closely follow up the case.”

Deliberations
Moreover, the Court of Appeals postponed until Sunday the deliberations on 13 petitions against the disqualification of some candidates and removal of their names from the list of parliamentary election candidates. A source disclosed the government’s lawyer attended the session and demanded for disqualification of the candidates while a number of candidates who were present requested for cancellation of the disqualification decision. Furthermore, the Administrative Court postponed until Wednesday the hearing on the appeal filed by former MP Bader Al-Dahoum regarding his disqualification.

Support
Meanwhile, Fifth Constituency candidate Nasir Al-Mirri stressed the need to support Kuwaiti women in all fields – whether in public sector jobs or as homemakers and trainers of generations. He said Kuwaiti women must receive all their rights as stipulated in the Constitution including housing care and social or financial privileges.

He disclosed Kuwaiti women are an important part of his electoral program as their issues are among his priorities. He said the second annulled Parliament approved his proposal on granting KD 550 monthly to unemployed Kuwaiti housewives who are above 55 years old. He intends to revise this proposal to reduce the required age to benefit from the grant to 45 years old in case he wins a parliamentary seat. He also emphasized the need to treat women fairly like the unmarried, widows, divorcees and those married to non-Kuwaitis; promising to be in touch with the voters and to find appropriate solutions to their problems.

He said Kuwaiti women have proven their abilities in various fields, calling on all female voters in his constituency to exercise their right to vote and choose candidates based on their own convictions, away from any pressure.

On the other hand, Fifth Constituency candidate and former MP Hammoud Al-Hamdan underscored the need to impose harsher penalties on members of terrorist cells, criminalize the act of supporting terrorist organizations, and arrest those who incite sectarianism and offend Muslim scholars. Speaking in the election forum at his diwaniya in Fintas, Al-Hamdan asserted the Parliament should play a constructive and effective role in strengthening cooperation between Arab countries.

He said the Parliament must also work closely with the government in serving the interests of the country and its people. He pointed out Kuwait is facing big challenges because of its location. He said, “Everything is boiling from all sides.

We thank God, the ruling family, and the people of Kuwait for their unity and generosity as the country remains protected from bombings, foreign conspiracy and arsenals surrounding it.” He added there are new challenges related to demography, housing, security, health, education and economy. “God willing, we will overcome all these challenges through our strong faith in God as well as our optimism and good will. We must remain united and focus on public interests, instead of dividing the nation,” he concluded

By Abubakar A. Ibrahim Arab Times Staff