Kuwait’s opposition MPs urge Prime Minister to resign

Several opposition politicians in Kuwait have urged the Prime Minister to resign following recent differences that arose in the National Assembly, local media reported.

On Tuesday, Kuwait’s National Assembly approved a request by the government to study if a grilling motion against the Prime Minister was in line with the constitution.

Opposition MPs called the measure “illegal” and called on PM Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah to step down and held speaker Marzouk Al-Ghanem and pro-government lawmakers responsible for the action, Kuwait Times reported.

The decision by the Assembly was taken in a “secret session” demanded by the government and came after a debate, Ghanem told reporters.

He said the grilling motion has been referred to the legislative committee, without providing any further details.

The grilling motion against Sheikh Jaber includes claims about “lack of government policies, conflicting retrenchment plans and failure to defend national identity”, the official Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported.

The latest move comes after a similar grilling filed by another MP a few weeks ago was found to be “in breach of the constitution” and was not debated.

Opposition MPs have now issued two statements, each signed by seven MPs, calling on the PM to resign, and have declared “their non-cooperation with the government”.

The first statement called Tuesday’s proceedings “unconstitutional and illegal” and said it weakened parliamentary supervision.

Meanwhile the second statement expressed frustration with the government’s boycott of a special session on Sunday and the cancellation of two grilling motions against the PM.