The Civil Service Commission expressed displeasure with several government bodies and accused them of hindering plans to Kuwaitize ministries and authorities. “Appointing residents on rewards or special contracts systems in notable numbers is a circumvention of the state decision to implement the replacement policy and plans to correct the population structure,” CSC said.

Instructions by CSC to concerned authorities indicated that many government bodies suffer from overemployment due to the presence of expats on the rewards system, while their jobs can be carried out by Kuwaiti employees, especially since the majority of the jobs on the rewards system are administrative and do not require special skills or rare degrees. “It is proven that the appointment of residents benefits them at the expense of state funds, with the inability of administrations to distribute work duties and control employees so they perform their jobs without laxity,” it added.

“Government bodies are required to dismiss expat workers on the reward system just like their colleagues who work according to employment grades, especially as the time for completing the Kuwaitization of the government sector is here and supposed to be at 100 percent,” the CSC said. It said the appointments do not include service jobs such as office boys and janitors because of a lack of Kuwaiti candidates for such jobs.

Arab meeting

As Algeria is preparing for the Arab Summit to be held in November, and wishes to invite Syria to participate after more than 10 years of absence, high-ranking sources said GCC countries will discuss this issue during the meeting of their foreign ministers to agree on a unified stand on how to participate, especially since some GCC countries are not ready to accept the return of the Syrian regime to Arab meetings despite the change in events and the resumption of relations between Syria and UAE and Oman.

Sources said Kuwait does not mind attending the summit at a high level, adding the Gulf discussions do not commit countries to participate at a certain level. “Saudi Arabia does think it is necessary for Syria to participate, though it is a sovereign matter for the summit host, especially since the meeting of the ministerial council of the Arab League did not decide whether Syria participates or not, so it is not expected for the Saudi presence to be at a high level and thought to be at the level of foreign minister,” sources said. Arab foreign ministries decided earlier to hold the Arab Summit on Nov 1-2, which coincides with the 68th anniversary of the launch of the liberation revolution against French colonialism in 1954.

The health and foreign ministries are moving to involve the UN in deporting around 450 expat patients who refuse to leave government hospitals, with some remaining hospitalized for more than three years. The health ministry has placed the issue of expat patients who remain in public hospitals although their treatment is complete on its priorities list, and asked the foreign ministry to take practical steps to deport them, after being frustrated due to a lack of action by their embassies in Kuwait and a lack of response for demands to take them, especially after some of their family members abandoned them, while others do not have relatives in Kuwait.

Official sources said such patients number around 450 of various nationalities and are a burden on health ministry services, as they occupy beds without a need that can be used by other patients waiting to be admitted. They said this is a humanitarian issue and they cannot be forced out, especially since many of them are elderly.

The sources said after embassies of these patients did not act, their numbers, the hospitals they are in, the time they have spent there and their health conditions have been tallied, adding the ministry will not ask for treatment fees in exchange for their departure. The sources said the files of these patients will soon be sent to the foreign ministry to find another way to resolve the issue, which is to contact the United Nations office in Kuwait to deal directly with embassies, or for the UN to transfer these patients to their countries in cooperation with Kuwaiti authorities.

Kuwait has seen a surge of Covid cases again, the Health Ministry has recorded 248 new covid cases, and the active number of cases has risen to 2128, the number of patients in Covid wards has risen to twenty one, the ministry said.

The Ministry of Communications has terminated 49 non-Kuwaiti employees; clarifying this is a mutual decision, reports Al-Seyassah daily quoting sources. Sources disclosed the terminated non-Kuwaiti employees include seven who reached 60 years old, pointing out that the number of expatriate workers who were replaced by Kuwaitis reached 13 in 2021.

Sources added the number of expatriates currently working in the ministry is less than 100, stressing the ministry is committed to Civil Service Commission (CSC) Resolution Number 11/2017 on the number of expatriates who will be replaced with Kuwaitis each year. The CSC and Ministry of Finance are given copies of decisions to terminate non-Kuwaiti employees as per the replacement policy, sources concluded.

Official spokesperson of the unified government application for electronic services — Sahel —Yousef Kazim announced that the Environment Public Authority (EPA) has joined other government agencies providing electronic services through the application, thereby, allowing individuals to obtain a permit for fishing at Kuwait Bay, reports Al-Anba daily. Kazim explained the new service allows fishing hobbyists who own registered boats to book an appointment for fishing at Kuwait Bay.

He said fishermen and hobbyists must obtain a permit to fish at the bay in order to avoid legal problems, particularly being charged with illegal fishing. He called on fishing enthusiasts who own boats to fully benefit from the new electronic service of EPA through Sahel application.

Citizens and expatriates spent around KD62 million on cigarettes, tobacco and its derivatives in 2021, reports Al-Anba daily quoting statistics from official sources. According to the statistics, the country’s imports of tobacco products in the last three months of the previous year was the highest at the time — valued at KD18 million; followed by the third quarter with KD17 million, KD15.1 million for the second quarter and KD11.77 million for the first quarter.

Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti market sold 18,000 Play- Station 5 devices within 19 months since Sony launched the product in November 2020, reports Al-Anba daily quoting sources from the technology and electronic devices sector

Al-Rai reported that instructions were issued to arrest and deport all expatriates who were involved in the Friday protest in Fahaheel.

In support of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Asian expatriates made a sit-in protest at Fahaheel after Friday prayers. They will be deported from Kuwait as they violated the law and regulations of the country, which prohibits expats from holding sit-ins or demonstrations in Kuwait.

A video of the protest was widely shared on social media, and detectives are in the process of arresting them and referring them to a deportation center to be sent back home.Kuwait will not allow them to enter again Kuwaiti expats must respect Kuwaiti laws and refrain from taking part in any type of demonstration.

Despite the government’s efforts to enhance food security, control markets, and avoid any shortage of basic commodities, consumers have been complaining about the continued scarcity of chicken in cooperative societies and parallel markets, reports Al-Qabas daily.

Inspection teams of several government agencies, including the Committee on the Food Security System, conducted a tour recently after an increase in the complaints from consumers and officials of cooperative societies alike about the great shortage of chicken and chicken products. The tour revealed the existence of an artificial crisis by some supplier companies, which refrained from supplying the markets with its products in order to increase the prices by 20 percent. This was confirmed to the daily by officials.

The tour, which was launched under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Social Affairs in some cooperative societies, revealed an abundance of some products and a severe shortage in others, especially local poultry products.

Despite the assurances of government officials about the availability of goods and the abundance of food stocks, the commercial advisor to the Zahra Cooperative Society Abdul Rasoul Sarkhouh revealed that there is a problem in the process of supplying local poultry products to the cooperative societies.

On the sidelines of the tour, he disclosed that the problem in the shortage of poultry and the current crisis is an artificial one caused by local poultry companies, which are refraining from providing supermarkets with their products due to their request for an increase in prices.

He added, “We rejected this demand to increase the poultry prices. Consequently, some local companies refused to supply, which created a shortage in the quantities required for display within cooperative societies. At the same time, the products of companies are widely available and cover a long period.

The cooperative societies are the first line of defense for the strategic stockpile in Kuwait, and have a monthly plan to provide the stock according to the current conditions that Kuwait is going through”.

The Assistant Undersecretary for the Cooperative Sector in the Ministry of Social Affairs Hiyam Al-Khudair said the food stock is sufficient and reassuring, indicating that there is price control by the Ministry of Commerce, and keenness to follow it up by the relevant committees.

Regarding poultry products, Al-Khudair explained that the matter is under study to figure out the reasons behind the lack of supply from the companies. The ministry will develop solutions in this regard.

The observations about the increase in prices and their disparity between cooperative societies relate to the mechanisms of some boards of directors.

She said, “The Ministry of Social Affairs is monitoring the situation. No request for a price increase for any commodity was submitted by the Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies”.

Al-Khudair highlighted the monitoring on shortage of stock, adding, “In the event of deliberate violation of any commodity, the supermarkets responsible for this will be issued with a citation”.

Head of the Consumer Protection Authority Mishal Al-Manea explained that the cooperative societies were divided according to locations to look into the price differences.

The results led to the discovery of minor differences in some products, especially chicken. The relevant committee was informed. This necessitated the union officials to follow up the matter and conduct inspections, especially since the matter is considered a violation of the circulars of the Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies.

He revealed that one of the reasons for the rise in the prices of some products is the cancellation of the annual offers submitted by some companies, and the return to their normal prices based on a previous circular from the Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies.

Head of the Farwaniya Inspection Department of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Abdul Azim Al-Shammari said inspectors are deployed to seize cases of monopoly and profiteering in supermarkets, shops or companies, and those found in violation are referred to the commercial prosecution for necessary legal actions to be taken.

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) has addressed the Ministry of Health after the ministry asked it to provide it with a legal opinion regarding the launch of the service to create sick leave without medical advice, so that the employee can obtain the leave through the platform without visiting the health center, reports Al-Anba daily.

The Assistant Undersecretary for Legal Affairs at the CSC, in his response to the ministry, of which the daily has obtained a copy, stated that the Ministry of Health’s proposal is discretionary to the employer, according to the proposed procedure, which has the right to accept and reject, as this is a legal violation, and contradicts the nature of the sick leave. He indicated the proposal requires the CSC to amend its Decision No. 39 of 2006 referred to, because this decision requires the granting of sick leave to be granted by primary health care centers, and therefore granting it without medical approval according to the proposed procedure requires presentation of the issue to the CSC and therefore no action may be taken without the CSC approval.