KUWAIT CITY, June 20: Several citizens attended the meeting held in the diwaniya of MP Muhammad Al-Mutair on Monday; simultaneously with the sit-in of opposition MPs in the National Assembly building, which has been going on for six days now. Former MP and Political Science Professor Abdullah Al-Nafisi delivered a statement through video conference as he is currently suffering from a minor illness. He hailed the MPs holding the sit-in, affirming it is an unprecedented event which could dramatically change parliamentary work.

He said history will proudly record the sit-in, while calling on the rest of the MPs to join the sitin. He stressed the need to respond to protesters’ demands; foremost of which are the dissolution of the incumbent legislature, holding fresh elections and appointment of a new prime minister. He urged the protesters to stand firm until their demands are met and ignore those trying to persuade them to choose other options. He also suggested that the protesters should choose among themselves who will serve as their official spokesperson to update the public on the developments about the sit-in.

He then emphasized the need to strictly comply with the Constitution, which should be the basis of all solutions. The two-day Global Parliamentary Conference started Monday in Istanbul, Turkiye with the theme, “Parliaments and the Global Compacts on Migration and Refugees: How to Bring about Stronger International Cooperation and National Implementation?”

Cooperation
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) organized the conference in cooperation with the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye (GNAT) and under the patronage of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Kuwait National Assembly (KNA) Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim arrived in Istanbul on Sunday to attend the conference, which will end on Tuesday. Kuwaiti Ambassador to Turkiye Ghassan Al-Zawawi, Kuwaiti General Consul Muhammad Al-Muhammad and senior officials at the Embassy of Kuwait in Turkiye warmly welcomed Al-Ghanim.

On the sidelines of the conference, Al- Ghanim had meetings with IPU President Duarte Pacheco, GNAT Speaker Mustafa Sentop and head of the Iraqi parliamentary delegation Evan Faeq Jabro. Pacheco and Al-Ghanim talked about issues included in the agenda of the conference, such as the impact of refugees and migration on the region; as well as items in the agenda of the next IPU conference scheduled for October 2022. Kuwaiti Ambassador to Turkiye Ghassan Al-Zawawi and General Consul of Kuwait Muhammad Al-Muhammad attended the meeting as well. The meeting with Sentop focused on issues of mutual concern, particularly the current circumstances in the region. They discussed the Kuwaiti investments in Turkiye, which Al-Ghanim had earlier tackled with senior Turkish officials. Al-Ghanim expressed his gratitude to Sentop for dealing with a number of real estate fraud cases.

The meeting with Jabro touched on parliamentary cooperation between Kuwait and Iraq; including ways to address regional, continental and international issues. Jabro extended Iraqi Parliament Speaker Muhammad Al-Halbousi’s message to Al-Ghanim during the meeting.

MP Osama Al-Menawer asked Minister of Public Works, Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy Ali Al-Mousa about the individuals and entities that have received fish farms -- land or sea -- from the Public Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) since Jan 1, 2019 till date. He requested for copies of the minutes of PAAAFR meetings on the distribution of these farms. He inquired if PAAAFR held meetings during holidays and days off specified by the Civil Service Commission (CSC).

MP Muhammad Al-Hewaila forwarded queries to 13 ministers -- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil and State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Muhammad Al-Fares; Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Essa Al-Kandari; Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Ahmad Nasser Al-Muhammad; Minister of State for Municipal, Communications and Information Technology Affairs Rana Al-Fares; Minister of Education, Higher Education and Scientific Research Ali Al-Mudaf; Minister of Justice and State Minister for Integrity Enhancement Jamal Al-Jalawi; Minister of Information and Culture Hamad Rouhaldeen; Minister of Health Dr Khalid Al-Saeed; Minister of Finance and State Minister for Economic and Investment Affairs Abdulwahab Al-Rashead; Minister of Public Works, Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy Ali Al-Mousa; Minister of Commerce and Industry Fahd Al-Sherean; Minister of Social Affairs and Societal Development and State Minister for Housing Welfare and Urban Development Mubarak Al-Arow; and Minister of State for National Assembly and Youth Affairs Muhammad Al-Rajhi.

He asked these ministers about the factors that delayed the implementation of Decree No. 81/2022 to amend the decree issued on April 4, 1979 in order to organize civil service and allow public sector workers to convert their unused vacation days into cash. He wants to know the conditions and requirements specified by the ministries for the encashment of unused vacation days.By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh Arab Times Staff