Egypt's current account gap narrows, but overall BoP records deficit    Egypt's PM reviews debt reduction strategy, eyes more private investment    Egypt hosts international neurosurgery conference to drive medical innovation    Egypt, India discuss expanding industrial, investment partnerships    World Bank proposes Egypt join new global health initiative    Egypt's EDA discusses Johnson & Johnson's plans to expand investment in local pharmaceutical sector    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Sisi sends letter to Nigerian president affirming strategic ties    Egypt welcomes 25-nation statement urging end to Gaza war    Egypt, Senegal sign pharma MoU to unify regulatory standards    Egyptian pound ticks down in early Tuesday trading    Famine kills more Gaza children as Israel tightens siege amid global outrage    Kuwait's Crown Prince, Egyptian minister discuss strengthening cooperation    Egyptian Drug Authority discusses plans for joint pharmaceutical plant in Zambia    Egypt's FM seeks deeper economic, security ties on five-nation West Africa tour    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt foils terrorist plot, kills two militants linked to Hasm group    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt exports 175K tons of food in one week    Giza Pyramids' interior lighting updated with new LED system    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt, Uruguay eager to expand trade across key sectors    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Kuwait cabinet may be key to ending political gridlock
Published in Daily News Egypt on 08 - 02 - 2012

KUWAIT: Facing a bigger and bolder opposition swept into parliament by voters frustrated with Kuwait's dysfunctional politics, the country's rulers are under pressure to appoint a cabinet that can survive long enough to deliver much-needed reforms.
Opposition candidates won a solid majority in the 50-seat assembly last week, tapping into a surge of anger over the unpopular former prime minister and corruption, which drew rare protests onto the streets last year.
Kuwait's new Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, as always handpicked by the country's emir, will now appoint a new cabinet before parliament holds its first session, due within two weeks.
The make-up of that cabinet may determine, at least in part, how successful the next government will be in unfreezing the political gridlock that has paralyzed the tiny Gulf state.
"You need now a magic formula to appease everybody and to make sure that this parliament will not from day one start bickering and fighting with the cabinet," said Abdullah Al-Shayji, chairman of political science at Kuwait University.
The new line-up will have to make allowances for the shift in power on the ground, which could mean appointing more members of the elected assembly. Under Kuwait's constitution, at least one elected MP must also be given a ministerial position. In the previous administration, a single parliamentarian was selected.
"What is more important than the parliament is the formation of the cabinet," said Ghanim Al-Najjar, professor of political science at Kuwait University.
Without an enemy, the opposition, which is united by little more than antagonism toward the government given that political parties are banned, could even be forced to join the cabinet at the table instead of challenging it.
However, there are no indications that the opposition is inclined to make concessions given the mandate they have just been given.
Insiders say a feud over which branch of the Al-Sabah dynasty gets to rule has exacerbated the situation as warring sheikhs back different MPs to weaken rivals.
Historically, the title of crown prince has passed back and forth between the Salem and Jaber branches of the family. But the current Jaber emir, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, ascended the throne in 2006 after the previous infirm emir from the Salem side reigned for just nine days, which means the Jaber line has effectively held on to the position since 1977.
"There has to be a ceasefire among the ruling family in order for this cabinet to function properly outside the wheeling and dealing and pulling and shoving," Shayji said.
So far, the track record is not encouraging.
Seven cabinets have come and gone in the past five years, usually to dodge embarrassing questioning in parliament.
Parliamentarians have sought to grill ministers over everything from squandering public funds to allowing "Star Academy" - the Arab talent show equivalent of the "X-Factor" - to be broadcast on Kuwaiti TV screens.
"It (the result) was expected because of the bi-polar society we've been living in with the previous parliament," said Jassim Al-Qamis, who managed the re-election campaign for liberal candidate Aseel Al-Awadhi.
Many who lost ground in the vote, such as liberal and Shia Muslim candidates, were seen by voters as too lenient on the outgoing Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah, whom they accused of graft. Islamist candidates made gains due to their aggressive stance against Sheikh Nasser rather than religious fervor.
Lost opportunity
The deadlock has turned the US ally from Gulf trailblazer to laggard, holding up reforms and pushing the level of foreign direct investment in the country to the lowest in the region.
In the past decade, Kuwait attracted just $1.5 billion in foreign investment, or a mere 0.5 percent of total Gulf inflows, while impoverished Yemen attracted $3.5 billion.
Kuwait's economy grew by 5.7 percent in 2011, compared with 6.5 percent for Saudi Arabia and 18.75 percent in Qatar, according to IMF estimates. Kuwait's investment as a percentage of GDP has consistently trailed Gulf peers since the mid-nineties.
Although the government runs a budget surplus of about 24 percent - by far the highest in the Gulf, according to the International Monetary Fund - the extra money has yet to translate into better infrastructure.
Farouk Soussa, Middle East chief economist at Citi, warned that Kuwait might enter "a period of more messy politics" where policy gridlock could continue to deter investment and block big economic development projects.
A senior private banker told Reuters he received a call from an important client in Kuwait asking him to invest more of his funds outside the country after hearing the election result.
In 2008, Kuwait cancelled a $17.4 billion proposed joint venture with Dow Chemical after parliament challenged the cabinet and threatened to subject the prime minister to questioning over the deal, which would have involved a cash payment of $7.5 billion just as the global economy was reeling from the first wave of the global financial crisis.
The joint venture was aimed at taking advantage of Kuwait's oil wealth to produce petrochemicals and plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene and polycarbonate, used in products ranging from plastic bottles and compact disks to computers and agricultural compounds, and would have created thousands of jobs.
The same year, liberal parliamentarians successfully engineered the collapse of a $15 billion refinery deal.
No major deals have been proposed since.
Political reforms demanded by opposition politicians and youth groups include an independent judiciary and an end to the ban on political parties, and that the prime minister be elected.
This week, ratings agency Fitch warned that ongoing "friction" within Kuwait's government would continue to weigh on reforms and hinder political effectiveness.
"The elite squabble and we get unemployment, frightening price increases and disillusion," said Kuwaiti citizen Adnan Abdullah, walking past the stock exchange. "These problems will not be solved in the near or mid-term."
Additional reporting by Mirna Sleiman.


Clic here to read the story from its source.