The parliamentary Public Utilities Committee, in its meeting on Monday, agreed that the conflict between shop owners and the investment company in Mubarakiya Market must be settled in court. In a press conference following the meeting, MP Mohammed Al-Hadiya disclosed the committee discussed the issue of the investment company raising the shop rental fees in the market with representatives of the State Properties Administration, Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects, Kuwait Municipality and the shop owners harmed by the rent increase.

Several documents, including contracts, were presented to the committee; hence, it needs to hold at least two more meetings before submitting its report and recommendations to the National Assembly. The government put the market contract up for bidding which gives the winning investment company the right to increase rent, while conflicts or grievances over this matter should be settled by the judiciary.

The committee believes the contract should not have been put up for bidding as it is considered a tourist attraction managed by the government in order to protect the livelihood of small investors.

Tackled 
On the other hand, the committee also tackled the Al-Sawaber Residential Complex issue. After the discussion with the concerned officials, it was confirmed that the complex is under the jurisdiction of the Cabinet in spite of the demand of the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) to declare the complex as a cultural site.

Al-Hadiya revealed the Municipality confirmed that the demolition of the complex is included in the Kuwait Vision 2035 and it has been marked as part of the structural framework since 2011. Representatives of the State Properties Administration stressed that all tenants have been compensated fairly and all payments have been concluded.

The committee decided to further look into the procedures taken by the concerned authorities before finalizing its report. MP Riyad Al-Adsani affi rmed determination to continue his work toward exposing those involved in the multimillion deposits scandal and ensure all culprits are held accountable, otherwise the lackluster ministers will bear the responsibility for failure to do their job.

Al-Adsani declared that he had reiterated the above statement during a recent meeting with the Ministers of Interior and Finance where they deliberated on the dimensions of the case. He explained the most important aspect of the issue, saying the ministers are now aware that reports from the banks came after certain illogical deposit transactions, which the ministers should take seriously-as some current and ex-lawmakers were involved.