Govt ill-prepared to counter slump in oil prices, says MP – Lawmakers slam Dashti comments on rights issue

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KUWAIT CITY, Sept 27: The government has yet to present a clear plan on addressing the repercussions of continuous oil price decline in the international market and to diversify sources of national income, says MPAhmad Al-Qudaibi. In a press statement, Al-Qudaibi pointed out no concrete step has been taken since the government and Parliament discussed the oil price decline and ways to find alternative sources of national income in the latter part of last year. He attributed the government’s lack of vision on the oil price decline to its belief that the global price of oil will not be less than $100. He warned against relying on such conviction due to the continuous oil price decline and other factors like the decision to lift the ban on Iran’s oil exports after signing the nuclear deal.

Meanwhile, MP Mansour Al-Zufairi praised the vision presented by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al- Ahmad Al-Jaber Al Sabah in the World Summit on the adoption of the development agenda beyond 2015 at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York.

He asserted the Amir stressed the need to achieve sustainable development goals in developing countries. He highlighted the efforts exerted by Kuwait in this regard, its excellent foreign policy and crucial role in boosting the economies of developing countries. He emphasized the importance of regional and international steps to realize the development objectives, citing as an example the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED). MP Madhi Al-Haji also praised the speech of HH the Amir who urged the participants to shoulder their responsibilities particularly in facing sustainable development challenges.

He added the Amir stressed the keenness of Kuwait to shoulder regional and international responsibilities in order to achieve Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and to address related issues. Also, a number of lawmakers criticized the statement of MP Dr Abdulhamid Dashti against Kuwait’s position in the human rights field, stressing the government should take legal procedures to hold him responsible, reports Al-Qabas daily. MP Mansour Al-Zufairi said Kuwait’s record in the human rights field is clean and Dashti’s allegations will not hurt the Kuwaiti society.

He asserted any foreign agenda to distort the image of Kuwait will be proven futile, stressing Dashti must be punished for his statements against the country Meanwhile, MP Sultan Al- Leghaisam said Dashti hailed the efforts exerted by the interior minister after the arrest of the DAESH members but his stance changed completely when the Al-Abdally cell, whose members were accused of spying for Iran and Hezbollah, was uncovered.

Also, MP Dr Mohammad Al- Howailah pointed out Kuwait gained prominence when the United Nations recognized its efforts in the field of human rights; therefore, any speech aimed at destroying such a good reputation will fail. He added Kuwait provides assistance to almost all countries in the world, calling on the government to immediately take action regarding such false allegations.

By Abubakar A. Ibrahim Arab Times Staff and Agencies

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