MPs up in arms against ‘Jazeera’

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Minister queried on oversight capacity of KAC

KUWAIT CITY, Sept 21: MP Fares Al-Otaibi asked Minister of Public Works Amani Bugamaz about the plan to repair the roads in Yarmouk, including the dates of starting and completing the repair works. He wants to know the budget allocated for paving roads in Yarmouk and Kuwait City, percentage of the budget that has been spent so far, and date of the last road maintenance works in Yarmouk.

MP Marzouq Al-Ghanim asked Minister of Commerce and Industry and State Minister for Youth Affairs Muhammad Al-Aiban if the Public Authority for Sports (PAS) director general interfered in the election of the Asian Olympic Committee (AOC) to support a certain candidate. He requested for verification of information he obtained that the director general met with the chairman of Kuwait Olympic Committee to vote for a certain candidate at the AOC election. If this is true, he wants to know the name of the candidate. He also requested for verification of information that the director general met with the chairpersons and senior officials of some sports clubs concerning the General Assembly of Kuwait Olympic Committee in order to switch the support of the committee from the candidate of Kuwait Olympic Committee to the candidate of Iraqi Olympic Committee.

He inquired if the director general interfered in the election of the chairpersons of sport associations in violation of the relevant regulations, number of consultants at the authority including their qualifications, if they met the conditions, if any of them has been exempted from some conditions, and if any of the consultants has directly addressed some public institutions as a representative of PAS. If yes, he wants to know the legal basis. He asked about the procedures followed in the appointment of the current director general of PAS and if he was exempted from any condition.

MP Majed Al-Mutairi forwarded queries to Minister of Public Works Amani Bugamaz about the oversight capacity of Kuwait Airways Corporation (KAC) over the low-cost carriers like Jazeera Airways and if KAC takes decisions regarding the tickets.

He obtained information that Jazeera Airways is renting Terminal Five (T5) at a very low price compared to the volume of its business. He asked about the rental amount that Jazeera Airways pays, if some of the due amount has not been collected, and if the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) contacted the Legal Advice and Legislation Department to request for approval on reducing the rent of Jazeera Airways. He added a court decision was issued against Jazeera Airways for hitting a blimp that belonged to the Ministry of Defense a few years ago. He asked if DGCA recorded a violation against Jazeera Airways due to that incident, if it reported the incident to the concerned minister, and number of Jazeera Airways employees who previously worked at DGCA including their jobs at DGCA and their current jobs.

Shortage
Al-Mutairi asked the health minister about the causes of the shortage of equipment at the Orthotics and Prosthetics Center since 2020 till date and the strategy of the ministry to develop the center. The lawmaker asked Minister of Finance Fahd Al-Jarallah if it is true that the Enterprises Resource Planning (ERP) software provided by Kuwait Aviation Services Company (KASCO) in 2020 did not work and if the cost is KD1 million. He wants to know the reasons for providing another ERP software in 2022 at a cost of KD92,000; that is, less than two years after the one provided in 2020. He inquired if the second contract is aimed at covering the problems found in the previous system.

MP Shuaib Al-Muwaizri asked the oil minister if Jazeera Airways enjoys 10 percent discount in fuel prices just like the subsidy specified in Council of Ministers decision number 129, stipulating that the discount is only for the national carrier — KAC. He wants to know if this decision was amended to include Jazeera Airways. Al-Muwaizri asked Minister of Finance Fahd Al-Jarallah about the reasons for reducing the destinations of KAC before and during the term of incumbent Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ma’an Al-Rezouqi. He requested for a copy of the decision to appoint Al-Rezouqi as CEO including the latter’s experience and qualifications. He pointed out that Jazeera Airways launched flights to the destinations cancelled by KAC, so he inquired if the corporation conducted feasibility studies that led to the cancellation of certain destinations. MP Abdulaziz Al-Saqaabi forwarded queries to Minister of Finance Fahd Al-Jarallah about KAC.

He demanded for copies of the decisions on forming the former and current Boards of Directors of KAC, and the curriculum vitae of the board members and current CEO. He wants to know the number of executives who resigned since the appointment of the current board till date, a detailed report on the revenues of KAC in the last five years, financial progress since 2014 till date, report on the development of employees in the last five years comparing the nationals and expatriates, report on the rating of KAC in SKYTRAX in the last 10 years, and report on the development of its destinations, fleet and number of passengers in the last 10 years. Meanwhile, National Assembly Speaker Ahmad Al- Sa’adoun sent a cable to Speaker of Armenian National Assembly Alen Simonyan to greet him on the National Day of his country. By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh Arab Times Staff

This news has been read 7824 times!