Six Kuwaiti MPs disclose wealth
Six Islamist MPs in oil-rich Kuwait have submitted a full account of their wealth saying they hoped their voluntary initiative will encourage others to follow suit.
The MPs, members of the Islamic Constitutional Movement [ICM], Kuwait’s branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, handed the wealth disclosures on Tuesday to speaker Jassem al-Khorafi.
In January, two ICM MPs from the previous parliament became the first lawmakers in Kuwait to disclose their wealth. The ICM strength rose to six MPs following the June 29 general elections.
The Gulf state, where accusations of graft and corruption have increased amid an unprecedented surge in oil revenues, has no law on wealth disclosures for MPs or senior officials.
But the outspoken opposition, which now has an absolute majority in parliament, has vowed to pass a wealth disclosure bill in the next term which opens on October 30.
Last year, a parliamentary committee approved a bill requiring ministers, senior civil servants and MPs to disclose their wealth before assuming their posts and after leaving them.
The government objected to the bill on the grounds that it conflicts with clauses of the constitution.
One of the MPs, Nasser al-Sane, who heads regional lobby group Arab Parliamentarians Against Corruption, said he hoped the move would encourage other MPs and officials to follow suit.
The tiny Gulf state sits on 10 per cent of global oil reserves and has a native population of one million alongside two million foreign residents.