Adasani says to grill premier: former MP received money from PM office

KUWAIT: Opposition MP Riyadh Al-Adasani vowed yesterday he would file to grill Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah over claims by a former lawmaker that he received money from the premier's office. Adasani said that the grilling is ready and he will file it once the case goes to court and insisted that if the assembly prevents its debate, he will file more grillings.

The case dates back to several years ago when ex-MP Abdullah Al-Tameemi said when he was an active lawmaker that he received money from the premier's office as an assistance for a Kuwaiti citizens. At that time, MPs called for an investigation into the issue claiming this amounted to bribery.

Several months ago, Adasani raised the issue again and mentioned the name of Tameemi who sued him in court for defamation. The case is still being investigated by the public prosecution which can either press charges or shelve the case.

Adasani said that if the case goes to court, he will demand that the premier testify as a witness in the case. He also said that he will then file the grilling and if the assembly scraps it, he will file a second, a third, a fourth and so on. He said he will also highlight other financial scandals including the so-called deposits case in which several MPs were accused of receiving millions of dinars in political bribes.

Adasani also recalled a case he recently raised in which incumbent MPs and some merchants are accused of money laundering. He said the case is being investigated by the public prosecution and the merchant has been detained. The lawmaker insisted that he will not leave these financial cases and could go further to demand the confidential spending of the premier to be probed.

In another issue, MP Thamer Al-Suwait yesterday filed a draft law calling to force a mandatory shutdown of all shops, cooperative societies, malls and others during the Friday (Juma) prayer. The draft law proposes a fine of up to KD 1,000 for violators and the closure of the violating shop for one month. The bill does not propose a duration for the closure but left that for by-laws.
The lawmaker said that it is clearly stated in the Holy Quran that work must be completely halted during the Friday prayer and accordingly shops should be closed. The issue was raised before in the assembly but no decision was made.

By B Izzak