Ahmad Al-Sarraf

IT WILL take time to complete the new passenger terminal project at Kuwait International Airport. Until then, millions of passengers must endure the present miserable conditions of the airport, especially the issue of malfunctioning toilets. The toilets in service are not even enough for employees of the airport, not to mention the millions of passengers!More often than not, the passport counters are vacant — although they are enough to serve passengers, and securitymen are always missing from their posts. To make matters worse, there is zero coordination between employees at the counters specified for GCC citizens and those of other nationals, especially during rush hours.The State of Kuwait has excluded the citizens of some 52 countries from the condition of entry visa but the citizens in question are exposed to unjustified delay and distress due to the absence of securitymen. A passenger usually waits in queue for a long time, and when it reaches his turn, he’s asked to leave the queue to purchase a stamp for few dinars. He is then directed to a bank to change money since he’s not in possession of local currency. He buys the stamp and joins the queue he left about an hour ago, again. The degree of suffering visa free nationals undergo contradicts the noble intention of saving them from the hustle and bustle of traveling, especially as they are citizens of the world’s richest countries.It only needs K-net machines to be installed at the counters to end the shameful situation. I have personally witnessed many cases and I am not exaggerating at all. I even stopped receiving my guests at the airport to avoid listening to their embarrassing complaints concerning bad treatment meted out to them.Also, the airport needs to change the silly plastic trays provided for passengers to keep their belongings while going through the metal detector. The plastic trays are for storing spare parts and I don’t really know who convinced the airport administration to purchase them.Sheikh Salman Al-Humoud was appointed as the administrator of Kuwait International Airport recently and we are urging him to restore security and respect to the vital facility, because nobody can do without it. We also call upon Sheikh Salman to get rid of the army of porters crowding the arrival and departure halls, as many of them are not doing any serious job. There are better ways of carrying luggage as seen in the airports of many respected countries.The previous airport administration failed and we hope the new administration represented by Sheikh Salman Al-Humoud will manage affairs appropriately and carry out the necessary reform due to his wealth of experience.Email:[email protected]By Ahmed Al-Sarraf