Kuwait entered a new period of political turmoil Wednesday after opposition MPs filed two motions to oust the prime minister and his interior minister over corruption charges. Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah and Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Khaled al-Sabah are both senior members of the Al-Sabah ruling family that has been ruling the oil-rich Gulf state for 250 years.
Ten opposition MPs filed on Tuesday a "motion for non-co-operation" against the premier following a marathon closed session. Sheikh Nasser, the first prime minister to be called to account before parliament since the legislature was introduced in the Gulf emirate in 1962, could be ousted if the motion is passed.
"A motion has been officially submitted, and voting will take place on December 16," parliament speaker Jassem al-Khorafi said after the session was reopened to the public. MPs questioned the prime minister of the emirate for six hours in closed session after voting in favour of closing proceedings to the public.
Sheikh Nasser faced allegations his office misappropriated tens of millions of dinars (dollars) in the run-up to 2008 elections and that he issued a 700,000-dollar cheque to a former MP last year. The motion, if passed, would still need to be sent to the emir who decides to either sack the premier, or dissolve parliament and call fresh elections.
In the early hours of Wednesday, 10 other opposition MPs filed a no-confidence motion against the interior minister for providing parliament with false information during an earlier quiz on June 23. The minister will be automatically dismissed if parliament approves the motion in a vote scheduled for next week.The prime minister and the two ministers denied any wrongdoing.
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