Kuwait's premier on Wednesday narrowly survived a parliament vote seen as a serious bid to oust him over a police crackdown, but the opposition vowed to keep up their bid to unseat him. Twenty-five MPs voted in support of Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah, a nephew of the oil-rich Gulf state's ruler, while 22 were against him and one abstained, speaker Jassem al-Khorafi said.
"In accordance with the constitution, parliament reaffirms its confidence and co-operation with the prime minister," Khorafi said after a three-hour session held behind closed doors. The "non-cooperation" motion was filed on December 28 by opposition MPs who accused the premier of breaching the constitution and suppressing freedoms.
It fell short of the 25 votes needed to be passed in the 50-seat assembly, with one MP unable to vote because he is a minister and another absent outside the country. After the vote, Kuwaiti ruler, Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, summoned the crown prince, premier and parliament speaker to a meeting, the official state KUNA news agency reported without providing details.
And leading pro-government Shiite MP Hussein al-Qallaf submitted his resignation saying lawmakers can no longer perform their duties under continued political instability. "The body of this nation has been repeatedly stabbed. Unfortunately, these stabbings did not come from an enemy but from some of its own people, which led to instability, tension and conflicts," Qallaf said in the resignation letter.