‘Removal of tent market a matter of urgency’

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KUWAIT CITY, July 12: The Minister of Municipal Affairs, Dr. Rana Al-Faris has called for the evacuation of the tent market in the Al-Rai area as a matter of urgency within 30 days, while taking the necessary measures in accordance with the established regulations, reports Al-Qabas daily. Al-Faris stressed, in a letter she addressed to the Director- General of the Kuwait Municipality touched on the recommendations contained in the final report of the fact-finding committee, which was formed by the ministerial decision issued on June 15, 2022 to discuss the causes of a fire in the tent market.

Following the meeting a recommendation was submitted by the neutral committee, a copy of which has been obtained by the daily, to provide alternative locations for the tent market in other governorates. The market, the sources said, will be equipped with all security and safety requirements and the requirements of the Directorate-General of Fire Department and the Environment Public Authority. The senior official has requested action to put the following recommendations into effect:

■ Form a joint committee of specialists in the relevant departments in the public and municipal firefighting forces, to take the necessary measures to urgently evacuate the tent market, due to its non-compliance with security and safety requirements and the impossibility of implementing it in its current form due to the distribution of plots according to the current scheme.

■ The necessity of reviewing decisions related to public markets, especially Resolution No. 151 of 2006 regarding the issuance of the public markets regulation, and the issuance of another comprehensive regulation for all matters related to markets, including the tent market, to include reference to all requirements that must be met in accordance with the laws and regulations in force in the State of Kuwait, as well as a section on penalties.

■ Review the decision to form the Public Markets Committee so that it includes more powers and an inspection mechanism for the markets within the Committee’s jurisdiction, with the need to grant it more powers and apply the chapter on penalties.

■ Provide other sites for the tent market in the governorates complete with security and safety requirements and compliance the Environment Public Authority laws and regulations.

Clarified
Al-Faris clarified that the licenses to exploit the plots in the tent market included in Clause No. (6) say the first party (Ministry of Finance) has the right to terminate the license in the event that the second party (the licensee) violates any of the conditions of the license, and that the first party has the right to terminate the license at any time it deems fit without being obligated to give any reasons. And since Clause No 5-D of the licenses to exploit the plots in the tent market also included the pledge of the second party (the license holder) “to vacate the plot licensed to it at its own expense and handed over to the first party (the Ministry of Finance) whenever asked to do so at any time and without delay and in the same condition it was received at the time.”

Al-Faris said that in order to preserve lives and money, and to avoid any accident that might result in the harm to the owner of the license, one of his employees or one of the market’s visitors since the tent market does not comply with the security and safety requirements and it is not possible to implement these requirements on the market in its current form, please do the following — Coordinate with the DGFD to assess the current situation of the market and take the necessary measures against any violation detected and speed up the work necessary to evacuate the tent market, in coordination with the DGFD and the Ministry of Finance, provided that the license holders are given a period not exceeding 30 days to vacate the licensed plot of land at their own expense, and hand it over to the Ministry of Finance in the same condition at the time they received it, taking the necessary measures for removal by the Municipality according to the applicable systems and in coordination with the mentioned authorities.

Ensuring
This is in addition to ensuring the implementation of security and safety requirements in all shopping centers that fall under the supervision of the Municipality and taking the necessary legal measures against violators. The minister added that in light of the Municipal Council’s decision dated February 11, 2019 allocating a site for the tent market in the Jahra Governorate, it is necessary to take the necessary steps quickly with regard to the design and implementation of the new market in accordance with security and safety requirements, and work to speed up the necessary work towards putting the recommendations into effect, while informing the ministry periodically on the progress made in this regard, bearing in mind that this issue is considered very important and urgent.

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