6LOCALARAB TIMES, FRIDAY, JULY 3, 2015

Panel to monitor whether civilservant actually comes to work

Nationality card only at 18: Al-Jarrah

KUWAIT CITY, July2, (Agencies): TheDirector General ofthe Labor ForceProtection, AbdullahAl-Mutawtah, onThursday said a spe-cial panel had beenformed to examinerecords of the work-ers serving in thepublic sector.

Among the commis-sion’s tasks is checkingwhether a civil servantemployee actually showsup at work, he explained ina press statement.Members of the panel willalso examine residence ofthe employees to examinesome of the privilegesgranted to workers.

The panel will also ensurethat employers in the publicsector actually pay salariesand wages to the workers ontime.

Meanwhile, AssistantUndersecretary for Citizenshipand Passports Affairs at theMinistry of Interior MajorGeneral Sheikh Mazen Al-Jarrah has instructed the con-cerned officials to issue thenationality card only to citi-zens aged 18 years and above,reports Al-Anba daily.

Sources said Director ofthe Nationality Section inthe General Department forCitizenship and PassportsAffairs Mohammad KhalifaBu Shaiba is closely follow-ing up the entire process forthe issuance of the national-ity card. Sources revealed itonly takes 10 minutes toissue the card once theapplication is submitted;indicating this is part ofsteps aimed at easing proce-dures for citizens who wantto register in universities,ministries and governmentalinstitutions.

Meanwhile, Bu Shaiba hasaffirmed that he is doing hisbest to deal with requests,respond to queries and com-plete procedures within ashort span of time.

LeaveDirector of the Human

Resources Division at KuwaitOil Company (KOC) HassanAbdullah Al-Kandari recentlyissued circular number13/2015 regarding paymentof the cash equivalent ofunused annual leave days forall employees starting fromJuly 1, says Al-Seyassah.

Al-Kandari mentioned inthe circular that this step is aclear indication of the compa-ny’s commitment to guaran-tee equality among allemployees in line with thedecision of Kuwait PetroleumCorporation (KPC) to allowthe staff to cash their unusedleave days.

He explained all employeeswhose accrued annual leavedays exceeded the balance ofone year have the option toreceive the cash equivalentand retain their normal annualleave balance. He addedthose who want to receive thecash equivalent should fill upthe form and submit it beforeJuly 30.

In another development,Acting Director of the PublicAuthority for ManpowerAhmad Al-Mousa has issuedan administrative decisionallowing the employer togrant the employee paid-leave to attend periodical orsocial labor meetings andconferences, reports Al-Jarida daily.

Al-Mousa explained thatthe decision sets specific con-ditions and rules to organizethe process of granting paid-leave, and which require theemployee to present a formspecifying the period of con-ference or meeting, and withan invitation letter stating thetopic, date and place of theconference in order to get theleave approved without theemployer deducting thesalary or the employee losingthe balance of due annualleaves.

Meanwhile, Al-Mousa at arecent meeting discussed theproject of technical coopera-tion with International LaborOrganization (ILO), UnitedNations DevelopmentProgram (UNDP), theInternational ImmigrationOrganization (IIO), andSecretariat-General ofPlanning to improve the capa-bilities of employees.

He said the two-year proj-ect covers services andresearch studies with severalother activities aimed atimproving employee capabil-ities in several fields, whichinclude health, career safety,and data collection andanalysis.

Photos by Anwar DaifallahVolunteer medical team from Germany, which is currently in Kuwait to treat the victims of Imam Al-Sadiq Mosque bomb-ing, visited the Amiri Hospital Wednesday and met with the hospital’s director Dr Afrah Al-Sarraf. Dr Al-Sarraf said the hos-pital agreed with the visiting team that five victims of the incident should continue their treatment in Germany after diag-nosing their condition. She added the German team will bear the total cost of treatment as a sign of solidarity with the

Kuwaiti government and citizens.

Martyrs debts dropped, cash for kin

KU mourns loss of colleagues in blastKUWAIT CITY, July 2, (Agencies):Professors and staff at Kuwait Universityon Wednesday eulogized former col-leagues and their partners who were vic-tims of last week’s deadly Imam Al-Sadiqmosque terrorist bombing.

The employees, who were amongst the26 people martyred while performingFriday prayers after an explosives-strappedman walked in and blew himself up,include Jassim Al-Khawaja, a PsychologyProfessor, Ali Al-Nasser, Ali Al-Faili,Sadeq Jaafar (brother of Professor HudaJaafar) and Abdullah Al-Sayegh (husbandof Professor Lulwa Essa).

The event was held to “eulogize ourcourageous martyrs after the treacherouscrime that runs counter to the teachingsof our honest faith (Islam), which forbidsthe killing of life,” said the head of teach-ing staff at the university, Dr. MaimounaAl-Sabah.

She added that, “the targeting of a houseof God can only stem from a deviant sec-tion of the society.” Speaking about HisHighness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah’s visit of thelocation, unarmed and unguarded, immedi-ately after the blast, she said that His

Highness’s presence is “the presence of allthe people, in all of their sects, and his tearsare those of the people.” She alsoexpressed pride over the unity displayed bythe Kuwaiti people in the face of adversity.

Commenting on the gesture, Ministerof Education and Higher EducationBader Al-Essa expressed gratitude to theuniversity and staff, describing it as“wonderful stance”.

Meanwhile, Director of Martyr OfficeFatima Al-Ameer has announced the clas-sification of the victims of the recent bombexplosion at Imam Al-Sadiq Mosque as‘martyrs of natural disasters and excep-tional public accidents’ as per a decreeissued by the Cabinet, reports Al-Rai daily.

During a press conference held onTuesday, she revealed that the office iswaiting for a report from Ministry ofInterior for the exact number of martyrsand their names because some of theinjured victims are in critical condition.

Al-Ameer explained that the martyrs’debts of electricity and water consump-tion and telephone service charges havebeen dropped and their families willreceive financial support and a specialpension. These families will receive free

healthcare, social, educational and enter-tainment services as well as priority inhousing care. If the martyr was a bache-lor, his parents will receive these servic-es; but if his parents are dead, his broth-ers will be the beneficiaries. If the martyrwas married, his parents, wife and chil-dren who are unemployed and unmarriedwill be the beneficiaries of these services.

She stressed that the office will treatKuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti martyrs equal-ly, indicating that teams have beenformed to communicate with the familiesof the martyrs, follow up the procedures,assist the families in coordinating withthe office and ensure the families are pro-vided with the services offered by theMartyr Office.

Al-Ameer affirmed that the office willnot provide any services unless itreceives the necessary documents partic-ularly death certificate, civil ID of thedeceased, nationality certificate, marriageor divorce contract is available and a per-sonal photograph of the martyr, adding,“If the martyr is not a Kuwaiti, his fami-lies have to submit his Civil ID, passport,a personal photograph and other relateddocuments”.

KFSD photosKFSD team during the round

KFSD photoDirector of Kuwait Fire Service Directorate Lieutenant General Yousef Abdullah Al-Ansarivisited a firefighter — Captain Ameer Jasem Al-Mashmoom — who was among thoseinjured in the bombing of Imam Al-Sadiq Mosque. During the visit, Al-Ansari inquired aboutthe health condition of Al-Mashmoom and conveyed a message from State Minister forCabinet Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah who wished him

speedy recovery.

‘Amir presence made impact’

Unity shown by Kuwaitis hailedKUWAIT CITY, July 2: Sheikh MohammadAli Al-Taskhiri, Senior Advisor and Envoy ofthe Islamic Republic of Iran has commendedthe depth of unity Kuwait demonstrated at thefuneral of the victims of the terrorist attack onShiite mosque last Friday, reports Al-Rai daily.

Al-Taskhiri said unity displayed by Kuwaitisconveys a clear message to the troublemakersand crisis provokers conspiring against its ruin.He noted the presence of the Amir in sharingthe difficult moment made a great impact onthe nation.

Despite his critical health condition (as hesuffers paralysis), Al-Taskhiri was keen onmourning with Kuwaitis and extended condo-lences to the Amir and his people. He laudedKuwait for uniting in period like this, even ashe’s deeply hurt by the tragic incident.

He noted the enemy uses 10 out of 90 per-cent of the differences Sunnis and Shiites holdto incite conflict and enmity between the twodoctrines, stressing there is no difference in thetwo doctrines and Imams of the two sects havealways been known for their unity.

Bid to ensure fire safety

A team from the Fire Prevention Sectorat Kuwait Fire Service Directorate(KFSD), led by Major Ali Bin Haidar,inspected a number of mosques andhusainiyas to ensure these places aresafe in preparation for the last 10 days ofRamadan.

In a press statement, the sector dis-

closed the team also checked the smokedetectors and looked into the precautionarymeasures being taken in the worshipplaces.

The sector said the inspection tour start-ed in Sharq where the team checked thesafety and security conditions, in additionto the locations of fire alarm systems.

Amir offers condolences: HisHighness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-AhmadAl-Jaber Al-Sabah sent Wednesday a cableof condolences to Indonesian President JokoWidodo on the victims of the military air-craft that crashed in the highly populous cityof Medan in Sumatra Tuesday.

In the cable, His Highness the Amirwhished those injured speedy recovery.

His Highness the crown Prince SheikhNawaf Al-Ahmad A-Jaber Al-Sabah and HisHighness the Prime Minister Sheikh JaberMubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah sent similarcables. (KUNA)

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‘Kuwaitis sleep most’: Results of arecent survey carried out in the first week ofthe holy month on ‘sleep cycle’ in GCCstates via cell phone indicated Kuwaitissleep for long hours during Ramadan, fol-lowed by Saudis, reports Al-Qabas daily.

The survey conducted among 2056respondents aged 18-55 years showedKuwaitis on the average sleep extra 85 min-utes compared to the citizens of Emirate. Itnoted the sleeping time for Kuwaitis startsfrom 12:20 am until 10:00 am.

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Bonus faces delay: Minister ofEducation and Higher Education Dr BaderAl-Essa has instructed AssistantUndersecretary for Public Education FatimaAl-Kandari to speed up the evaluation of theperformance of teachers and the administra-

tive staff, reports Al-Anba daily quotingsources.

Sources explained a big number of schoolsare already closed, except the high schoolsand this delayed the evaluation process.Sources said this will also delay the disburse-ment of excellent job performance allowanceuntil the beginning of next year.

Sources revealed the ministry is waitingfor reports from the Public Education Sectorto review them before forwarding to theFinancial Sector.

Moreover, Assistant Undersecretary forFinancial Affairs Yusuf Al-Najar has con-firmed allocation of a budget for the excel-lent job performance allowance which willbe paid within two weeks after receiving thelist of beneficiaries.

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‘Follow Kuwaiti footsteps’: HumanRights Watch (HRW) has asked other GCCcountries to follow in the footsteps ofKuwait which enacted the Domestic LaborLaw recently, reports Al-Rai daily quotingsources.

Sources said the organization urged theKuwaiti authorities to implement the newlaw immediately in order to fill the gaps andprotect the rights of about 660,000 domesticworkers.

Sources added the organization regardsKuwait as more developed than other GCCcountries in terms of granting domesticworkers their rights, affirming the enactmentof the law is a big leap forward.

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