KUWAIT: The government is gradually taking certain steps in cooperation with some MPs to amend the ban on coeducation and tweak certain other controversial laws, a local newspaper reported yesterday quoting a cabinet insider.
Some lawmakers had previously proposed an amendment to the law that mandates that separate schools and university classes must be allocated for male and female students in the public and private sector, said the source who spoke to Al-Qabas on the condition of anonymity. "The proposal was not forwarded in coordination with the government, which negatively affected the government's serious attempts to amend the law," the source added.
He also indicated that the majority support that the government enjoys in the parliament should be used to scrap the coeducation ban as soon as possible. Furthermore, the source said that the "current cooperation between the legislative and executive authorities" has brought positive results "including the fact that MPs have not responded to labor strikes and financial demands as opposed to their predecessors, which was in line with the state's financial directions."
Meanwhile, Al-Rai reported that the Public Institution for Social Security "cannot accept" parliamentary demands for increasing children allowances, pensions and early retirement pensions due to their projected financial cost. A letter signed by the institution's General Manager, Fahad Al-Rajhan, and quoted in the report, explains that the proposed early retirement program leads to "actuarial deficit, especially if the retirement age was not determined because that would lead to the fund going bankrupt." A study conducted within the institution also indicates that the parliamentary proposal costs KD2.1 billion for 166,000 women under insurance, and KD4.5 billion for 143 million men under insurance.
© Kuwait Times 2013
