Parliamentary elections begin in Kuwait

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:51:22 GMT حين نؤمن أن ليس كل شيعي تبع إيران ¥ وليس كل ملتحي تبع طالبان ¥ وليس كل حضري عنصري ¥ وليس كل بدوي همجي ¥ عندها فقط نستطيع بناء وطن " Kuwaitis have headed to the polling stations across the country to vote in parliamentary elections, which are the fourth voting in the Persian Gulf country in less than six years. The Kuwaiti government had approved a decree in December 2011 that set Thursday, February 2, 2012 as the date for the elections, in which 287 candidates are competing for the 50-member parliament. Kuwait's new Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak al-Sabah formed a new cabinet in December 2011, with minor changes in the line-up, which comprised 10 ministers. The new cabinet is the eighth government in Kuwait since February 2006, when former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah took office. In August 2011, the Kuwaiti government faced a corruption scandal, in which about 15 lawmakers allegedly accepted large deposits into their bank accounts. On November 28, 2011, the former Kuwaiti premier resigned after demonstrations were held by young activists and opposition lawmakers who accused him of mismanagement and bribing the 15 lawmakers to “support the government.”