Recent dissolution of Assembly is 10th in Kuwaiti parliamentary life

The recent dissolution of the National Assembly is the 10th in the Kuwaiti parliamentary life and this legislature worked for 596 days. The first was when HH the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al- Salim Al-Sabah issued the dissolution decree on Aug 29, 1976. The Assembly at the time served for 565 days. The second dissolution decree was issued on July 3, 1985 by HH the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

The 1985 Assembly worked for 481 days. The third decree was issued on May 4, 1999 by HH the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. The Assembly then worked for 926 days. The fourth decree was issued on May 21, 2006 by HH the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. The Parliament worked for 926 days. The fifth was issued on March 19, 2008 by HH the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al- Jaber Al-Sabah. The Parliament worked for 616 days. The sixth was issued on March 18, 2009 by HH the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al- Jaber Al-Sabah. This Parliament worked for only 290 days.

Annulled
On Nov 30, 2011; the seventh decree was issued. On June 20, 2012; the Constitutional Court annulled the February 2012 Assembly because of errors in procedures related to the dissolution in 2009; hence, the results of the 2012 elections were declared null and avoid. The ninth decree was issued in October 2016.

Meanwhile, former MP Osama Al-Shaheen previously declared that the illegal appointments at the Assembly are considered crimes as they violate the principles of equal opportunities and justice. He said the Assembly hired consultants and employees whose salaries and allowances range from KD2,000 to more than KD4,000 without publishing job advertisements since 2016. He added that he looked into the records of the State Audit Bureau (SAB), which included these violations; indicating one of the illegally appointed employees is an 18-year-old citizen whose salary is more than KD2,000. Ironically, the recent information leaks claimed that Al-Shaheen supported illegal appointments.

On the other hand, the next legislature will discuss the financial status of the State, State budget for fiscal 2021/2022, and the final accounts of 34 subsidiaries and autonomous public institutions. It has been reported that the revenues of the State reached KD18.6 billion while the expenditures totaled KD21.6 billion — deficit of KD2.991 billion for fiscal 2021/2022. Oil revenues increased remarkably in fiscal 2021/2022 — KD16.216 billion compared to KD8.779 billion in fiscal 2020/2021. By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh Arab Times Staff