By KUNA,
Kuwait : The candidates in the 2008 parliament elections continued, Monday night, opening headquarters, holding seminars, and stating their main concerns and agendas, in the hope of rallying enough supporter to make it into parliament.
In the first constituency, hopefuls Saleh Ashour, Khali Al-Saleh and Anwar Bukhamseen stressed democracy already proved to be the solution for many problems the state suffered so far, and should be preserved in realization that it is the lone fool-proof guarantee of the state’s stability in the future.
“How can we hold violators accountable for their actions, without an authority with such jurisdiction?” exclaimed Ashour. Bukhamseen added more discussion on issues such as the electricity crisis, in the spirit of democracy, could have yielded a better solution and saved the huge sums spent on the awareness campaign and measure to curb power consumption.
Al-Saleh then noted there is the issue of corruption that aborts efforts on all levels.
Meanwhile, there is a growing public awareness and positive indications regarding countering this phenomenon. “It is up to the voters to select the candidate who is up to such task,” he concluded.
The first constituency covers 19 residential areas of 65,741 voters, including 35,671 women.
Candidate in the second constituency Adnan Al-Mutawwa’ stressed the “dire need” for amendment of legislation in several areas to better serve the public. He noted deterioration of services, despite ample financial resources, further proves this point. There is also need for closer examination of issues of the stateless (Bedoun) and vote buying, among other things.
The executive and legislative authorities must assess the situation, pin point problems, and address them adequately and in coordination, if the situation is to improve, he said.
The second constituency covers 13 residential areas of 41,365 voters, including 22,103 women.
For his part, third constituency candidate Talal Al-Ghanem affirmed at his electoral rally that the National Constitution “remains the safety valve for maintaning national achievements and democratic progress.” Speaking to potential voters in Hittin, last night, Al-Ghanem said higher national interests should be the basis for the relations between the executive and legislative authorities, as well as the foundation for development.
The country needs practical plans for utilization of the national resources, and this can be achieved through separation of jurisdiction of the authorities, according to the constitution, he said.
He urged the would-be MPs to restrict their work to supervision of the performance of the executive authority, to refrain from “arbitrary use of the supervision tools and insensibility when addressing controversial issues.” The NA hopeful also called for modern plans for upgrading the educational sector.
Third constituency candidates Faisal Al-Shaya, Khalid Al-Khalid, and Aseel Al-Awadhi, upon opening their campaign headquarters in South Surra, stressed on reform under the framework of democracy and upholding the constitution.
Al-Shaya called upon voters to work for the homeland’s future and stressed the importance of planning and strategizing with reference to programs and studies that serve the country’s increasing population.
He also blamed the government for deterioration of services, and ex-MPs for delaying the development process in the country.
Al-Khalid for his part asserted the need for drastic changes in the country, expressing hope the Kuwaiti people would adjust and contribute towards a better democratic future.
He also called for supporting the middle class in the Kuwaiti society, curbing inflation and increase of prices, and supporting the private sector and activating laws that lead to development and prosperity.
Female candidate Al-Awadhi expressed her belief that developing education and protecting the social fabric in Kuwait would lead to development. The educational process needs to lead to output that corresponds to the needs of the state and private sector job markets, she pointed out.