KUWAIT CITY, March 9: The parliamentary Education, Culture and Guidance Affairs Committee on Thursday discussed various issues as part of its task to follow up developments in academic institutions, says Committee Chairman MP Hamad Al-Matar who confirmed the attendance of acting Kuwait University President Fahd Al- Rashedi and other senior university officials at the meeting.

Al-Matar revealed the agenda of the meeting includes the recruitment exams prepared by Kuwait University as per the request of the concerned institutions. He said the committee discovered that the exam questions were leaked and the university is currently conducting investigations in this regard. He added the Ministry of Justice applicants, who got the top four scores in the exams, are relatives of university officials tasked to prepare the exam questions for the ministry. He continued saying that most of the recruitment exams cannot be considered professional.

He wondered why the Center of Excellence in Management at the College of Business Administration prepared the technical exams for the oil engineering sector, Justice Ministry and other scientific entities. He pointed out that the university’s administration has no idea about the mechanism for such examinations, indicating an agreement has been reached with Al-Rashedi to form a factfinding committee on Sunday to investigate the leakage of exam questions.

Meanwhile, on the occasion of International Women’s Day, National Assembly Secretary MP Osama Al- Shaheen met with several female Kuwaiti activists dealing with women, family and children issues. During the meeting, Al-Shaheen stressed the importance of the role of women in society. He said he previously submitted proposals on the empowerment of women as per the Islamic Sharia and national customs, indicating this meeting will help him in drafting more bills in the interest of women.

Empowerment
In a relevant development, MP Khalil Al-Saleh urged the government to focus on the empowerment of women and strictly implement laws on the social and political rights of women. He pointed out that the empowerment of women is the responsibility of both the legislative and executive authorities. He criticized the government for delaying the implementation of the law on the victims of family abuse. He added the law was ratified in 2020, but the executive regulations have yet to be completed.

Moreover, MP Adel Al-Damkhi submitted a proposal to allow the owners of small enterprises to establish shops in various land borders. He said these areas lack shopping centers for passengers. In addition, Deputy Assembly Speaker Muhammad Al- Mutair issued a statement in response to those who asked him to be in charge of parliamentary sessions, since he believes the presence of the government is not a condition for holding such sessions. He pointed out that despite his belief, he is still committed to the National Assembly Law authorizing the speaker to call for and preside over session, unless the latter authorizes his deputy to replace him in accordance with Article 31 of the law. He then stressed the need for His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to form the new government within the period specified in the Constitution and to attend the session slated for March 21.

MP Khalid Al-Omaira issued a statement, in which he criticized the current situation in the country and held the government responsible for the deterioration of public services and facilities; including roads, education, healthcare and housing. He asserted it is unacceptable that almost 70 percent of leadership positions in public institutions are occupied by acting officials. He also cited the report that Al-Qabas daily published on March 1 with the headline: “Eleven days for the Iranian nuclear bomb: The Pentagon studies a wide range of emergency preparations for a potential war”. He stated the government seems unaware of such a serious development, up to the extent that important positions like the defense minister and chief of staff are occupied by interim officials. He urged HH the Prime Minister to immediately form the government and choose ministers who have the ability to implement the program of the government and end the miserable conditions that the country is currently witnessing. By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh Arab Times Staff