KT 3-4-2013_Layout 1 - Kuwait Times

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KUWAIT: Under the patronage and attendance of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- Sabah, the National operetta “Kuwait Amana” was held at Bayan Palace theater yesterday. The event was also attended by visiting Maldives President Dr. Mohammed Waheed Hassan, His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- Sabah, National Assembly Speaker Ali Al-Rashed, former House Speaker Jassim Al-Kharafi, Deputy Chief of the National Guards Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- LOCAL Sabah, Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. It was also attended by First Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al- Humoud Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Deputy Minister of Amiri WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3, 2013 Amir attends national operetta ‘Kuwait Amana’ Diwan Affairs Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah and senior state officials. Male and female students carried out dance routines that depicted the history of Kuwait throughout the years. The operetta aimed at enhancing national unity and solidarity. —KUNA Overseas job no longer a need but a choice for many Filipinos Reintegration loan program introduced By Ben Garcia KUWAIT: Overseas employment will no longer be a need but a choice for many Filipinos, said the Philippine labor attaché to Kuwait as he explained in detail about the newest reintegration loan program recently introduced for Filipinos abroad. Philippine Labor Attaché to Kuwait David Des Dicang stated that whether it be Filipinos returning to their home country for good or those still employed abroad but willing to start up a business are eligible under the reintegration loan program recently introduced by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), a sub-agency of the Philippines Labor Ministry (Department of Labor and Employment-DOLE). He said Philippine President Benigno Aquino III encourages Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to return to the Philippines and start their own business. OFWs can avail themselves of 300,000 to 2 million pesos worth of loan packages carrying an interest of 7.5 percent per annum, with a maximum tenure of seven years. “The sole purpose of the program is to give a chance to Filipinos to start their own business so they would no longer need to work abroad but be owners of their own businesses,” Dicang explained. He noted that funds worth 2 billion pesos have been allotted for the program - 1 billion pesos from the OWWA fund, with another 1 billion pesos to be shared by Land Bank and the Development Bank of the Philippines. “The funds can be replenished if consumed, but OWWA, some allied banks and other government agencies are joining hands to monitor the project and implement this program for OFWs’ success,” he said. The new program is open to all Filipinos who have proof of employment abroad, regardless of whether they had finished their contracts, or for how long they had worked overseas. “The requirements have already been simplified so as to encourage more Filipinos to come back KUWAIT: The National Assembly, at its regular session yesterday, referred deliberations held during the session on traffic issues, to the parliamentary committee of public facilities for examination in coordination with relevant authorities, pending submission of a report in this respect within two months. The parliament, during deliberations of the traffic issue during a session held on March 20, prepared several recommendations in this respect, however, there was no and join the business community and create local jobs,” Dicang said. According to Dicang, OWWA reintegration program is just one of many projects spearheaded by the agency to help OFWs. He also mentioned of other services. For example, by paying a membership fee of US$25, an OFW can be entitled to a host of several benefits: disability and dismemberment benefits, death and burial benefits, scholarship and other incentive programs. Kuwait-based Filipino Overseas Workers Welfare Officer Norlita Lugto said the services and programs available for OFWs are intended to benefit the entire Filipino diaspora abroad. Therefore, just be the housemaids, but also engineers and other skilled workers will enjoy the benefits. She also pointed out that there were certain requirements that must be met in order to qualify for the OWWA reintegration loan program. “First and foremost, if you want to apply for the program, you must be an OFW, show proof that you have worked abroad, or are working abroad. It does not matter whether you worked 10 years ago or are still working, as long as you have proof that you paid the US$25 membership fee. Then show your passport, because the passport bears the visa of the country you worked for,” Lugto added. Since the program involves a business loan, there is another very important requirement: OWWA requires OFWs to present a feasibility study on the business they are planning to start. “Don’t worry about this one, because the OWWA regional office runs an entrepreneurship development training course. It’s a oneday seminar to help aspiring business persons understand basic accounting, conduct feasibility studies, and get trained on basic budgeting and bookkeeping. The Department of Trade and Industry will KUWAIT: Philippine Labor Attache to Kuwait David Des Dicang, center, and Welfare Officer Norlita Lugto, left, talking with the Kuwait Times reporter yesterday. sufficient time for MPs to read and approve them. One of the these recommendations proposes that the report of the committee include an analytical study of the traffic crisis, in terms of annual rise of the number of driving licenses, timetables for ventures of renovating roads and effects of execution of the overall development strategy on transportation. Moreover, this recommendation called for inclusion in the report information about help us conduct the training program. Now, there are also other agencies helping us, like the Department of Agriculture, for people interested in farming. We even have with us the Department of Science and Technology and the Department of Finance,” Lugto mentioned. However, she noted that Filipinos could benefit from the reintegration program only in the Philippines, at their respective regional offices. “We have OWWA branches in 17 regions across the Philippines. Therefore, we have advised every Filipino interested in the reintegration loan program to apply to their respective OWWA provincial offices,” she concluded. MPs refer traffic issue to parliamentary committee role of the government authorities regarding the traffic problem, reports of consultancy authorities in this regard and role of the public transport authorities for tackling it. The parliament, during today’s session, approved another recommendation that affirmed necessity of development and construction re-planning, with emphasis on establishment of integrated networks, roads, tunnels and bridges, to cope with the mounting traffic congestions. —KUNA
LOCAL Sharp increase in number of speed cameras on streets By Nawara Fattahova KUWAIT: The heavily increased number of speed cameras dotting News in brief Iraqi military attaché KUWAIT: Iraq asked Kuwait to open a post of military attaché in the country in a request that the Iraqi embassy handed to the Foreign Ministry in Kuwait, a local newspaper reported yesterday quoting an independent news agency. The original report released by the Enferaad News Agency and published by Al-Watan yesterday quoted diplomatic sources who indicated that Kuwait remained “reserved” on the issue of Iraqi request which they say “has been submitted more than two months ago.” The sources, who were not named in the report, meanwhile indicated that this issue was likely to be clinched during the planned visit of Kuwait’s Prime Minister HH Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah to Baghdad in the near future. The visit is expected to address the issue of border demarcation, investments in Iraq and other pending issues between the two countries. KIA retirement incentives KUWAIT: The Kuwait Investment Authority is planning a retirement program through which it will be able to encourage employees serving for long to retire and create opportunities for younger staff members to assume leading positions, a local newspaper reported yesterday quoting sources privy to the development. The proposed ‘package’ calls for paying an ‘end of service’ reward equivalent to 30-month salary to an employee who has spent a minimum of 28 years in office. The proposal also stipulates promoting employees before retirement so that they can enjoy pensions based on the basic salary in their promoted rank. Ministry plans to add more the Kuwaiti roads has been proving to be a terrifying prospect for many drivers, especially those driving fast. The drivers are already aware that KUWAIT: The Kuwaiti streets seem to be full of cameras, yet new ones are being added. — Photos by Joseph Shagra many new cameras have been installed in the last two months, but they also know that these are not working yet. Earlier, the Ministry had announced that these new cameras will be functional from this month. Adel Al-Hashash PR, Moral Guidance and Director of the Security Information branch of the Ministry of Interior informed the Kuwait Times that the speed cameras were already functional and drivers who were violating speed limits will be penalized. “The newly installed cameras are still being tested to examine their efficiency. This does not mean that the drivers found jumping speed limits would not be slapped with fines. They will certainly be penalized,” he pointed out. Although the streets seem to be full of cameras, yet new ones are being added. “The Ministry is currently working on adding new speed cameras along the ‘Safety Lanes’ on both sides of the roads. Currently, there are only a few cameras along these lines that are functional. Some installed earlier were only temporary. We noticed that many drivers are committing this violation and were using these lanes meant for emergency purposes. So we decided to have more cameras to bring down the number of these violations,” added Al- Hashash. The increasing number of speed cameras does not bother 41-yearold Ibtisam. “I respect the traffic rules and I drive carefully, so I am rarely fined. And if I do commit a violation, it is usually for wrong parking or other lesser mistakes, not for over speeding or jumping a red light. I agree that the there should be more cameras as I think it will help curb the instance of violations on the roads as drivers will be more careful and will decrease their speed to avoid paying fines,” she stated. But 27-year-old Hamad is annoyed by the new cameras. “I hate seeing cameras on the roads. I think these cameras are the reason for more accidents. Many of them were added recently and people are not used to these as yet, so they slow down suddenly which causes more accidents. In my view, the speed is not always responsible for the accidents. It is the lack of attention that is ranked as the number one factor causing accidents, according to the statistics of the Ministry of Interior,” he noted. In a separate issue, Adel Al- Hashash commented on the news published in local media recently regarding new additional strict conditions for issuing driving licenses to expat drivers. “What was published in the press was a proposal which has not been approved so far as a law or a regulation. This proposal is under study and will be filtered and passed on to the legal and legislative committee at the Ministry. It will be then approved and submitted to the institutions in charge. The public will be informed about any new regulations,” he concluded. Approval for food, national electoral committee KUWAIT: The National Assembly approved unanimously at its regular session yesterday of a draft law decree on establishing a public authority for food and nutrition after being discussed and voted for in its first deliberation. Number of MPs affirmed the country’s need for such a type of draft laws, especially in light of what has been stirred lately of suspension about availability of rotten meat in local market, and other related violations due to nonexistence of an actual control body over food. They stressed necessity of adopting and implementing the law, as well as stiffen penal- ties for law violators, demanding at the same time finding of specialized plants that teach examination of imported food as soon as possible in order to disallow quarantining it, destroying it, costing their owners, and intervention of “wasta” in entering rotten food to the country. On the other hand, the interior and defense parliamentary committee approved today of a draft law decree 21/2012 on the higher national electoral committee. The committee has approved of a draft law decree on the higher national electoral committee during its meeting on the sideline of Cabinet to implement ‘Youth Convention’ document KUWAIT: Prime Minister HH Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah has received a recommendation from HH the Amir to implement the articles of the ‘National Document for Youth’ - a set of regulations aimed at meeting the demands of young citizens, which were raised during the National Youth Convention held last month. According to sources with knowledge of the case, the cabinet is expecting to “assign Minister of Information and Minister of Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Al-Hmoud Al-Sabah to study the document in order to put together the necessary plans to implement its articles” during a meeting scheduled to be held shortly. Meanwhile, the same sources that spoke to Al-Rai on the condition of anonymity revealed that the ‘permanent ministerial committee for youths affairs’, recently formed by the cabinet, has started “developing a comprehensive program to support young people’s projects”, which was adopted by the Amiri Dewan. The program reportedly focuses on helping young people implement their ideas and further develop their small projects. “This part of the Amiri Dewan’s efforts to turn Kuwait into an international fiscal and commercial hub”, the sources said. Meanwhile, former MP Musallam Al- Barrak again called on the government to ‘keep some painkillers at hand’ in preparation for the opposition’s planned activities over the coming few weeks. Speaking on Sunday as the general coordinator of the Opposition Coalition, Al-Barrak announced that four events would be held over this month, which would culminate in a “large field activity, the time and place of which will be determined in early May”. The leading opposition politician explained that the activities would coincide with a highly anticipated Constitutional Court ruling with regard to challenges to the electoral law amendment, which is set to be made on June 16. “The activities are set to begin on April 10, with a gathering at the municipality yard in which the main topic of discussion will be ‘the elected cabinet and facing freedom suppression’”, Al-Barrak told reporters after a meeting at the coalition’s political office. He added that a second sitting was scheduled to be held seven days later, titled ‘the elected cabinet and the future of generations’, which would be followed by a similar event on April 24 - entitled ‘the elected cabinet and achieving justice’. The final gathering is set to take place on May 1 outside the Jaber Stadium, before a date is later announced for a major rally “which will be held on a date very close to the ruling’s day”, according to Al-Barrak. The opposition demands that the government withdraw an amendment that changed the number of votes per voter from a maximum of four to one, and scrap the parliament that was elected last December on the basis of the amended electoral law. The opposition had boycotted the elections on the pretext that the amendment was aimed at hurting their chances of securing a majority in the house. The opposition is also pushing for wide-scale amendments that will move Kuwait towards having full parliamentary system, in which the cabinet is formed from the parliament’s majority. Senior opposition figures have indicated on many earlier occasions that they will continue to press their demands for an elected cabinet even if the Constitutional Court upholds the amendment to the electoral law. Traffic officer beaten up By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: A traffic police officer approached authorities at Adan police station complaining that eight youth beat him up while he was doing his duty. The policeman said he received a report about some people driving recklessly in the Adan Area. Upon reaching the area, he closed the road to prevent them from escaping. The enraged youth beat him up. He was able to note down the number of one of the cars driven by those youth. Poles smashed An official working at the MEW reported to the Taima police that 11 lighting poles were smashed on purpose to steal electric cables inside. He said the theft happened at the Convoy Road. Citizen assaulted A Kuwaiti man reported to the police that a person assaulted him and tried to run him over in his car at Wafra Road near kilo 12. He supplied the police with his car number. Investigation is on. Infant’s body Detectives at the Mubarak Al-Kaber governorate were trying to identify a person who left a newly born baby near a citizen’s house. The infant died of lack of care. Security sources said that the infant’s body was taken to the medical examiner as there were doubts that stray dogs could have mauled the infant. parliament’s regular session, the committee’s rapporteur MP Abdullah Al-Tamimi stated to reporters. He added that the decree was unanimously approved in presence of Counselor Ahmad Al- Ajeel, head of Supreme National Elections Commission, Counselor Faisal Khuraibet, Counselor Salem Al-Khudair, Counselor Abdulaziz Al-Majed, and Counselor Mohammad AbuSlaib. Moreover, MP Al-Tamimi noted that the committee is to submit its report to the agenda of tomorrow’s session as urgent to vote for. —- KUNA KUWAIT: Bangladesh Embassy in Kuwait hosted a reception on April 1, 2013 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on the occasion of 42nd anniversary of the Independence and National Day of Bangladesh. On this occasion, Dr. Mohammed Barrak Alhaifi, Kuwait’s Minister for Health was the Guest of Honour. A large number of high level Kuwaiti dignitaries, diplomats, media personnel, Embassy officials and their spouses, members of Bangladesh Military Contingent (BMC) in Kuwait and Bangladesh community representatives attended the event. The program began with the national WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3, 2013 —Photos by Joseph Shagra Bangladesh Embassy holds National Day reception anthems of Kuwait and Bangladesh played by the Band of Bangladesh Military Contingent in Kuwait. Syed Shahed Reza, Ambassador of Bangladesh to Kuwait and the Guest of Honour Dr Mohammed Barrak Alhaifi cut a decorated cake prepared specially for the occasion. Throughout the program, the BMC band entertained the audience by playing enthralling tunes. A number of documentaries and vivid slide shows displayed the culture, traditions, religions, and beautiful landscape of Bangladesh. The distinguished guests were also served delicious traditional food.
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