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TUESDAY, JULY 26, 2011
local
Kuwait education crisis continues to escalate Med school students weren’t rejected, insists KU By Hussain Al-Qatari
KUWAIT: His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad AlJaber Al-Sabah receiving yesterday at Seif Palace Romanian Ambassador to Kuwait Constantin Nistor on the occasion of ending his tenure.
Plans for separate medical university KUWAIT: The Cabinet has given preliminary approval to recommendations passed by Kuwait University ’s Health Science Center (HSC), which would see the HSC separated from the KU and reestablished as an independent medical university in Kuwait. The move was revealed in a news report citing insiders who attended the talks that took place during the Cabinet’s weekly session last Sunday. These recommendations are based on studies conducted by the HSC, which took into account the agreement signed between the KU and the Ministry of Health by which the Mubarak Hospital became a subordinate facility to the HSC. The Kuwaiti government has been trying to find solutions to the persistent overcapacity problem troubling KU, the country’s sole state university. On Sunday, the Cabinet agreed during its weekly meeting to increase the maximum cap of new students for the next academic year from 8000 to 9000, in order to absorb 1,000 out of 2,000 new high school graduates who are still awaiting admission. The Cabinet also agreed to almost double the current number of scholarships provided from 1,100 to 2,000 to ensure that the remaining high school graduates wishing to attend university would be able to do so. Both of these proposals were presented during the meeting by education minister Ahmad AlMulaifi. Meanwhile, Al-Mulaifi was reportedly instructed to swiftly resolve the prob-
lems facing nine female high school graduates who were denied admission to the KU’s Faculty of Medicine due to overcapacity despite achieving outstanding results in their preliminary year. The university has been instructed to enroll the students for the upcoming two semesters without any restrictions. At the same time as the issue was being discussed during the Cabinet meeting, MP Musallam Al-Barrak held a press conference at the parliamentary building which was attended by the nine students. During the event, he appealed to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah to intervene. The students spoke during the conference, demanding equality with their male counterparts, who can be admitted to degree programs with lower GPAs to those required for female students. Another anti-government lawmaker, Dr. Faisal Al-Mislem, used his Twitter account to announce that his Development and Reform Bloc (DRB) is “seriously considering” submitting a request to hold an extraordinary parliamentary session during the summer recess in order to hold sessions to discuss the problem of difference between the reported 10,000 number of applications and the earlier 8,000 cap on new student numbers put in place by the KU administration. Al-Mislem was speaking before the government announced that they have resolved the 2,000 students’ problem. — Al-Rai
Maid dies in failed runaway attempt By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: An Asian domestic worker died yesterday after unsuccessfully attempting to run away from her sponsor’s home in Ardiya. The bedsheet she used as a rope to climb down the building’s second floor, snapped, causing her to slide down. She fell onto the ground sustaining fatal injuries to the head. A case was opened into the incident and police are interrogating the sponsor. Theft cases A citizen residing in Sulaibikhat filed a report with police stating that KD 500 was stolen from his car. In another incident, a citizen lodged a complaint with Al-Adan police stating that his motor cycle was stolen. It was parked outside his family home. Complaint withdrawn An expat accompanied by his wife approached the Capital police. He had reported her missing a few days earlier. He asked police to withdraw his complaint because she agreed to sign an undertaking. The husband refused to divulge details about his wife’s disappearance. Road accidents One man died and another was injured in a crash on the Fifth Ring Road. Although emergency services personnel were quickly at the crash site, they were unable to save the life of a 28-year-old Indian motorist, who died at the scene of the massive head injuries he sustained in the crash. His body was removed for autopsy, whilst a 21-year-old Kuwaiti man who suffered head injuries was rushed to Mubarak Hospital. In a separate incident, a 16-year-old
Kuwaiti boy was hospitalized after suffering multiple injuries in a motorbike accident on Bnaider Road. Meanwhile, a 26-year-old Kuwaiti man and a 40-year-old Syrian man suffered injuries to the stomach and right hand respectively in a crash on Fahaheel Expressway. Both were taken to Mubarak Hospital. In a fourth incident, two Kuwaiti men aged 76 and 26 were taken to Mubarak Hospital after sustaining minor injuries in a collision at the junction of Tunis Street and Beirut Street in Hawally. In a separate occurrence, a 31-yearold Bangladeshi expatriate suffered a possible fracture to bones in his left foot when he was hit by a car in Jleeb AlShuyoukh whilst crossing the road. He was taken to Farwaniya Hospital. Similarly, a 61-year-old Indian man was taken to Amiri Hospital when he complained of severe pain in his left thigh and right hand after being hit by a car on Fahad Al-Salem Street.
tion should not be a political or ideological issue as it has become. Minister of Education Ahmad Al-Mulaifi has been under pressure by parliament members for what is fast becoming an educational crisis. More than 9,000 students applied to Kuwait University for places for the upcoming academic year, although the university only has vacancies for 8,000. The crisis sparked debate between Kuwait’s conservative and liberal political blocs, with the liberal National Democratic Alliance stating that the current situation is partly caused by the university’s gender segregation law, which it said doubles the occupancy of time and space in order to segregate students, so exhausting all the university’s faculties. Islamist parliamentarians retaliated by insisting that gender segregation is irrelevant to the current problems, which they attributed to government negligence. Islamists accused the Ministry of Education of being corrupt, claiming that it is ‘managed by liberals who help the corrupt members of the cabinet with their agendas.’
‘Al-Othaina to be appointed communications minister by default’ KUWAIT: The Cabinet is set to appoint the current Minister of Electricity and Water Salem AlOthaina as Minister of Communications by default at the beginning of August, according to a news report which quoted a government insider. Al-Othaina has been serving as acting minister for both the Ministry of Communication and Ministry of Information since the Cabinet approved the resignation of former minister of both, Sami Al-Nisf, earlier this month. According to the government insider who spoke on condi-
tion of anonymity, the Cabinet is looking for a new minister to assume the information minister’s duties. Al-Othaina is enthusiastic about assuming the ministerial post at the MoC, where he spent 20 years as director of the internet department. On their part, the Cabinet members are keen to see Al-Othaina’s experience put to work in helping him manage the current crisis affecting internet prices and services in Kuwait. In separate news, the MEW is reportedly carrying out a large-scale operation in Jahra, target-
ing constructions owned by defaulters who have failed to pay their debts for years. According to a source familiar with the issue, the ministry has already disconnected power from 20 buildings in the Jahra industrial zone after their owners failed to heed earlier warning notices. On another note, Al-Othaina has reportedly issued a decision to form a committee within the Ministry of Information to distribute eleven industrial units in Ardiya to publishing companies. The units were previously owned by the Kuwait Municipality. — Agencies
Ministry tackles police corruption KUWAIT: The Ministry of Interior (MoI) is currently studying a number of allegations of police corruption and plans to take disciplinary action against any officers found to be guilty of any misconduct, whether against Kuwaitis or expatriate residents. Speaking on condition of anonymity, a ministry insider stressed that any police officers convicted of abusing their authority would be relieved of their duties. The insider revealed that the majority of complaints concern individuals being restrained and put inside police patrol vehicles but never referred to the relevant authorities. The insider also stated that many police officers will exaggerate motorists’ offences when issuing traffic tickets because of the financial rewards and bonuses they receive from their superiors for issuing large numbers of citations. “ This led to many complaints about unlawful traffic tickets being lodged,” the insider explained. — Al-Qabas
MANAMA: Kuwaiti Ambassador Sheikh Azzam Mubarak Al-Sabah with Bahraini King’s media advisor Nabil Yagoub Al-Hamar yesterday.
Departure of Fifth Fleet report baseless MANAMA: Reports that the US Fifth Fleet has left Bahrain territorial waters are “false”, said Bahraini King Media Advisor Nabil Yagoub Al-Hamar yesterday. The advisor made the remark during a meeting with Kuwaiti Ambassador to Bahrain
Sheik h Azzam Mubarak AlSabah here yesterday, adding that US officials had themselves rejected these reports. The official also stressed that the Kingdom of Bahrain had overcome the critical circumstances which surfaced recently.
Ambassador Azzam Al-Sabah for his part wished the kingdom and the Bahraini people prosperity and stability, and also noted there is constant development in the already strong relations between the two nations. — KUNA
Fight club A 40-year-old Pakistani expatriate was rushed to Mubarak Hospital after sustaining head injuries in a fight that broke out in Block Six of Khaitan.
Nine dead in road accidents last week KUWAIT: Nine people died on Kuwait’s roads last week, with five of the casualties being Kuwaiti and the other four expatriates. Announcing the latest grim statistics for the period from July 17-23, the Ministry of Interior’s traffic department urged all road-users to comply with traffic regulations for their own and others’ safety.
SAB finds violations in state bodies KUWAIT: The State Audit Bureau’s latest biannual report catalogues several administrative violations at state bodies, including appointing employees to specialist posts for which they have no aptitude or training, as well as giving promotions and conducting reshuffles without Civil Service Commission (CSC) permission. According to one SAB insider, the ministries where the violations took place have been instructed to resolve these
KUWAIT: Kuwait University spokesperson Faisal Maqseed issued a statement yesterday clarifying the details of the recent case involving nine female students which has caused a stir among parliamentarians. The high school graduates were allegedly rejected from enrolling in the program they applied for, despite meeting the requirements. Maqseed stated that they were in fact not rejected, but were accepted at the Faculty of Pharmaceuticals Medicine, in accordance with their GPAs for the first year of introductory courses. “Kuwait University accepts students, as per the regulations, who score more than a 2.5 GPA in the first year after their admission to the College of Medicine. According to their GPA and according to the number of seats available, they are distributed between the faculties of medicine, dentistry, or pharmaceutical studies,” said Maqseed. He added that the students are informed upon being accept-
ed in the College of Medicine that they will only be accepted in the program after one year of introductory courses. Two weeks ago, parliament members stated that the girls who were allegedly denied seats in the faculty they chose despite being qualified, must be admitted. MP Musallam Al-Barrak sent a letter to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah pleading that he intervene to resolve the girls’ dilemma. Meanwhile, MP Aseel Al-Awadhi told the press yesterday that the stance on segregation should not be political, urging politicians to keep the future of the students and youth its main priority. “The Islamist bloc is pushing to keep the segregation law intact because it assumes that this will guarantee it more voters,” she asserted. “It is not taking into consideration the fact that the victim of all this delay in negotiations is the future of students.” AlAwadhi urged Islamists MPs to invest the passion they currently expend on fighting coeducation in producing a practical solution to the current dilemma, noting that co-educa-
regulatory infringements before October when the audit bureau’s annual report is issued. “Those violations [the reallocation of staff ] were committed to help staff members to obtain privileges provided by other occupations than their original ones,” the insider explained. SAB chairman Abdulaziz Al-Adsani has reportedly issued instructions to establish a disciplinary body to deal with cases involving the misuse of state funds. — Al-Rai
KUWAIT: Ahmadi Municipality officials inspecting a number of foodstuff stores yesterday.
Foodstuff stores raided By Hanan Al-Saadoun KUWAIT: The Ahmadi Municipality in cooperation with the Public Relations Department at the Kuwait Municipality raided a number of foodstuff stores situated in the governorate. Several quantities of expired food items were seized. One restaurant and a food processing factory were shut down. They operated with-
out obtaining a license from the Municipality. The four-hour raid was headed by Mishaal Aba Al-Safi. Aba Al-Safi said that the 24 citations were issued, most of them operating without obtaining health certificates from the ministry. Two citations were issued for selling food items whose validity period had expired tea, vegetable oil, rice, sweets, cream. The total amount of confiscated items total to 500 kilo-
grams, which will be destroyed after necessary legal action is taken. Aba Al-Safi said that the Municipality’s team carries out raids on all foodstuff stores that falls under its jurisdiction. The team noticed that some stores remained closed so as to evade inspection. However, the owners are being closely monitored and legal action will be taken against them.