Ex-speaker Sa’adoun laments sharp rise in corruption index

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‘Govt must do more to confront graft’

Former National Assembly speaker Ahmad Al-Sa’adoun

KUWAIT CITY, March 21: Former National Assembly speaker Ahmad Al-Sa’adoun blames the government for the increasing level of corruption, attributing the situation to the government’s inability to confront corruption, reports Al-Qabas daily. Al-Sa’adoun said this during a symposium titled “Governmental corruption, judiciary independence and lifting the citizenships” organized by the Independent List at the headquarters of Kuwait Lawyers Society.

He highlighted a report issued in 2003 about corruption in Kuwait which included a suggestion to rectify the situation, indicating that the report was referred to the Cabinet but the latter did not do anything regarding that report since then.

Al-Sa’adoun expressed his surprise over the statements issued by His Highness the Prime Minister, affirming that most of the senior officials have been appointed based on wasta. He said the current Parliament is not different from the 2013 Parliament during the tenure of which all freedom-limiting laws were approved, adding that the 2013 parliament confronted enforcement of laws that protect state properties and public funds. In conclusion, Al-Sa’adoun lamented about the recent hike in the level of corruption.

Meanwhile, a member of the Parliament’s Budget Committee MP Riyadh Al-Adsani said Kuwait’s Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) is more than KD 600 billion. Indicating that he was informed by a senior state official that Kuwait’s SWF is KD 692 billion, he stressed that the time has come for people to know the true value of the SWF of their own country.

Former MP who was part of the dissolved 2012 parliament Dr Obeid Al-Wasmi said he was astonished by the statement issued recently by His Highness the Prime Minister in which the latter expressed his displeasure over the widespread corruption in Kuwait.

He clarified that the reason behind his astonishment is that such a statement was issued by a person holding a senior position. Dr Al-Wasmi said Kuwait has been witnessing deterioration in many fields including democratic development, quality of education and level of offered services.

He pointed out some voices that respond to any criticism by comparing Kuwait to other countries, stressing, “If a country suffers from political backwardness and other problems, it does not mean we must comparing ourselves with those countries, and forget about the rest of the countries.”

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