By B Izzak
KUWAIT: MP Bader Al-Mulla said yesterday he has sent a series of questions regarding safeguarding of personal information while using a new government application that provides all official online services. The lawmaker said he is not seeking to obstruct the use of the application and the adoption of electronic services, but wants to make sure that security of information and privacy of individuals are guaranteed before introducing the application.
Mulla said he asked Minister of State for Communications and Information Technology Rana Al-Fares if a technical study was conducted on the project and the department that programmed the application. He also asked if the project had been awarded to a company that subcontracted another company, and if their employees are governed by laws safeguarding personal information.
Mulla said he also asked the minister about the owners of the company and if it is possible that its ownership is sold to a third company with foreign links. The spokesman for the Sahel application Yousef Al-Kazem denied there are any legal implications regarding the application's technical and security features, adding that it provides all online government services. He said the program has been designed and implemented entirely by government teams and that it is being managed by a team of young Kuwaiti staff.
Meanwhile, MP Osama Al-Shaheen yesterday accused the commerce and industry ministry of failing to safeguard public property and funds. He said that although final court verdicts had been issued ordering the eviction of a company from around one million square meters of land at Mina Abdullah Port, the ministry is still dealing normally with the company.
He said that the Kuwait Ports Authority has complained the company is utilizing the land without obtaining any license from any government side including the fire department, exacerbating the risks if a fire breaks out in the area. The lawmaker said that in spite of the court verdicts ordering the company to leave, Commerce and Industry Minister Abdullah Al-Salman is still cooperating with the company. He said that he has sent a question to the minister asking him why he has refused to liquidate the bank guarantee of the company with the Kuwait Ports Authority.