KUWAIT CITY, Jan 26: The Minister of Commerce and Industry Ahmad Rashed Al-Haroun has denied there is a need to expand or increase the volume of subsidized commodities in ration cards at the moment, noting that the Ministry has been collaborating with provision companies and flour mills to review the included commodities regularly, reports Al-Rai daily.
In a press statement, Al-Haroun said the review normally leads to an increase or exclusion of commodities depending on the findings. He assured that the Trade Monitoring Sector will be stricter with the unfair price hike.
He reiterated that items included on the ration card are enough to take care of basic needs of families for now, and added that the commodities are prone to review and amendment in order to achieve the desired objectives and maintain prices to an appreciable level. “The Ministry is consistently monitoring prices in the markets, companies and cooperative societies, especially after we discovered violations in certain cooperative societies”, he said.


Meanwhile, based on the keenness of the Minister of Public Works Fadhel Safar Ali Safar to implement projects, the Director of the Kuwait Municipality Eng. Ahmed Al-Subaih formed an investigation committee to follow up the file of West Abu Fateera, which has turned from a service-oriented handicraft project into a commercial one, reports Al-Rai daily.
According to sources, the project has witnessed a severe violation of laws and the wastage of millions of dinars. The sources said the committee will refer the issue to the Public Prosecution in case the charge is proved. They hinted about the involvement of prominent tycoons in the case through payment of bribes to manipulate the file for personal interests. The sources disclosed that 500 shops were licensed illegally in one of the zone’s markets for commercial investment and were not renewed after the lease expired.
In other developments, the Deputy Premier for Economic Affairs, State Minister for Housing Affairs and State Minister for Development Affairs Sheikh Ahmad Fahd Al-Sabah has instructed the Secretariat-General of the higher council for Planning and Development to form a team to follow up the application of the government’s program and the five-year plan, reports Al-Qabas daily quoting reliable sources.
According to the sources, Al-Fahd, during his meeting with the leaders of the council, said the committee will include heads from the government’s authorities to facilitate direct cooperation with other authorities.
They added the council approved the forming of a department of coordination, follow up and monitoring of the committees’ activities, and efforts are being undertaken to set up direct communication between the government authorities along with easy access of data through computers.
The sources went on to say that Al-Fahd also stressed on a decree that will be issued to specify the work to be undertaken by the government authorities to fulfill the plan, while warning that penalties and punishments will be meted out to those who do not follow the set procedures. - Arab Times