Kuwait chief lawmaker wants fair shake for new gov't

KUWAIT, Dec 11 (KUNA) -- Kuwait's National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim said on Monday that the newly formed government should be given an opportunity to work with parliament in order to make progress on the political front.
Al-Ghanim told reporters that parliament should "lend a hand to the new government and mutual cooperation is needed to fulfill the aspirations of the Kuwaiti people." Meanwhile, he revealed that the freshly appointed ministers, nine of whom are newcomers, have been invited to attend parliament's regular session on Tuesday.
Kuwait's chief lawmaker encouraged MPs to offer their viewpoints on the new government lineup, saying that parliament will make up for lost time due to the former government's abrupt resignation.
On a request made by the former government for a special parliamentary session on Tuesday to enact a spate of new legislation, he said it would be saved for forthcoming regular sessions.
In response to another request for an extraordinary session to discuss the Jerusalem issue, Al-Ghanim said that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah assured him via telephone that the government is ready to make it happen.
He pointed out that the foreign minister is currently unavailable due to other commitments and the session will be postponed to a later date. (end) fn.nam