Kuwait Times, Wednesday, Aug 17, 2022 | Muharram 19, 1444
Ten more people accused of participating in illegal elections
Kuwait:
Investigations continued Tuesday on illegal primaries held in the
second electoral district, where 10 people were arrested including officers and
a Saudi citizen, as total charges reached 25. “The prosecution is now holding
nine Kuwaiti nationals including the head of a committee that organized the
illegal election in the second district,” sources told Kuwait Times
As for the 10 newly accused persons, it is reported their names were on the CID
investigations list on Monday. “Six candidates accused of participating in
illegal elections are still abroad, and they were notified to return as soon as
possible and surrender to the ministry of interior in order to be sent to the
public prosecution,” the sources added.
Serious measures
Kuwaiti authorities have serious measures to ban the outlawed tribal
by-elections ahead of the Kuwait’s parliament elections, expected in October.
Sources told Kuwait Times two weeks ago that authorities prepared a series of
tough security measures against any person who hosts by-elections at his
residence which include security restrictions, court cases and can go as far as
“withdrawing the host’s residence”. These threats have so far forced some hosts
to reject candidates’ requests to organize tribal by-elections and refund the
registration fees they had already collected from them, the sources added.
Kuwait’s election law bans hosting unofficial primaries to elect a candidate to
represent a tribe, religious sector, or any other social category ahead of the
official election date. Nonetheless, there have been several accounts in recent
years of by-elections hosted within tribes to elect a single candidate in hopes
of improving a tribe’s chances of representation in the National Assembly. This
practice has drawn public outcry and criticism from other candidates, who
complained of authorities’ alleged failure to take serious measures to stop this
illegal act.
New regulations
In other news, Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of Social Affairs
and Development Fahad Al-Shuraian issued new organizational decisions related to
cooperative societies. “Cooperatives must be wise when hiring new employees in
accordance with the cooperative’s needs. For executive and supervisory
positions, the salary should not exceed seven percent of total sales according
to the latest sales reports,” the decision said.
The decision also stipulated that all cooperatives that have exceeded the limit
for hiring should take the necessary procedures to fix their problems by
reviewing employment contracts and informing investigating jurisdictions of all
changes in order to not to exceed employment limits.