Page 12 - MEOG Week 46

MEOG
neWs In BrIeF
MEOG
PoLICy
Graft claim roils Kuwait’s
government as ministers
removed
Kuwait’s caretaker Prime Minister stepped aside vowing to clear his name on Monday and two ministers were replaced by the emir, as an unprecedented public spat intensified within the ruling family over alleged misuse of military funds. Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, who resigned as premier last
week along with the government, recused himself after being asked by Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah to form a new administration, state-run media said. Earlier royal decrees had removed the caretaker defence and interior ministers.
The row erupted on Friday, when outgoing defence minister Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, the Emir’s eldest son, alleged the government quit to dodge questions over hundreds of millions of dollars missing from a fund to assist military personnel. The statement sparked a rare high- profile row over suspected corruption.
The Emir, in an address the nation, called on Kuwaitis to remain united. he said the case was now with the judiciary and all media should refrain from publicising the issue until a verdict is issued.
Allegations of graft against fellow royals, particularly sitting ministers, are unusual
even for a country often seen as the most democratic and open of the six Gulf states. The turmoil comes as Kuwait, along with its oil-dependent neighbours, struggles to end the country’s reliance on expensive subsidies as it heads for its fifth straight budget deficit in an era of cheaper crude.
In a letter to the emir, Sheikh Jaber said the allegations were “all lies with no relation
to the truth, coming out unfortunately from a colleague and a brother.” With the claims now before the judiciary, “I find that it is my duty to first prove my innocence,” he said.
The emir named Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah as interim defence minister until a new government is formed, while Anas Al-Saleh, who’s state minister
for cabinet affairs, will take over the Interior Ministry, according to state-run KUNA news agency.
Sheikh Nasser denied there were any differences between him and fellow cabinet members, but Kuwaiti newspapers carried statements attributed to the replaced interior minister, Sheikh Khaled Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, calling the accusations of graft unfounded and asserting his readiness to stand trial to prove his innocence.
The immediate trigger for the government’s resignation appeared to be hostile questioning by lawmakers that forced the public works minister to resign and resulted in a request
for a no-confidence vote against the interior minister.
Kuwait, alone in the Gulf, has given people a genuine say in how they’re governed. But with political parties banned, the legislature is filled with populist lawmakers who routinely clash with the government, hindering policy making.
There have been seven governments since Sheikh Jaber was first appointed in November 2011. The next elections are due late next year. GULF BUsIness
ComPanIes
ADNOC to continue build on ADIPEC momentum
The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) will continue to unlock smart
growth opportunities as it navigates the evolving energy landscape and builds on the momentum gained during a record-breaking edition of the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition Conference (ADIPEC).
Provisional figures show an increase in visitor attendance by 7 percent, at 155,000; a 21 percent increase in the number of national and international oil companies participating; a 29 percent increase in the number of technical abstracts received, at 3,652 and over 100 government ministers and industry CEOs taking part in the conference sessions.
At the 4-day event, which ended on November 14, ADNOC made a series of strategic announcements to drive value as it doubles down on the mission of Oil and Gas 4.0 outlined by his Excellency Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and Group CEO of the Abu Dhabi National
Oil Company (ADNOC) while delivery ADIPEC’s opening keynote address.
In the address, h.E. Dr. Al Jaber announced ADNOC will join major international oil companies (IOCs) as founding partners of the ICE Futures Abu Dhabi (IFAD) – the new exchange that will be set up by Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) in Abu Dhabi to host the world’s first Murban crude oil futures contracts. The Murban Futures Contract will replace retroactive pricing with forward pricing, and help ADNOC to capture more value from every barrel of crude it produces.
Following the announcement, ADNOC explained its marketing, supply and trading strategy to over 400 oil and gas executives
at the ADNOC Trading Forum. It briefed them on its decision to adopt the new pricing mechanism for its Murban crude and provided further details of other initiatives it is pursuing to become a more proactive and adaptive marketer and trader, in the areas of shipping, storage, and trading.
adnoC
P12
w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m
Week 46 20•November•2019