VZCZCXRO8766
PP RUEHDE RUEHDIR
DE RUEHKU #0836/01 1491252
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 291252Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9234
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000836 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NOFORN 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, EB/ESC/IEC 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/29/2022 
TAGS: PGOV EPET KDEM KU NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
SUBJECT: TEMPERATURES RISE AS OPPOSITION MPS TARGET OIL 
MINISTER OVER GRAFT 
 
REF: KUWAIT 778 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1.  (C/NF) Summary: Opposition MPs have demanded the 
resignation of Oil Minister Shaykh Ali Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah and 
are threatening to question him in Parliament for defending 
his cousin and former Oil/Finance Minister Shaykh Ali 
Al-Khalifa Al-Sabah, one of five former Kuwait Oil Tanker 
Company (KOTC) senior officials accused of embezzling more 
than $100 million during the Iraqi occupation.  This is the 
third serious "grilling" threat mounted by MPs since the 
Cabinet was formed in March and threatens a further 
deterioration in Government-Parliament relations.  There is 
mounting frustration with Parliament among average Kuwaitis, 
though some accuse certain members of the ruling family of 
trying to sabotage Parliament and force its dissolution.  One 
influential Al-Sabah told PolOff that the current political 
deadlock in the country was the result of Kuwait's "juvenile 
and adolescent democracy," an indication of the ruling 
family's frustration with Parliament.  End summary. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Relations between Parliament and the Government 
took another downturn May 26 as opposition MPs announced 
their intention to "grill" (i.e. question) the Oil Minister. 
The 8-member National Action Bloc (liberal) and the 7-member 
Popular Action Bloc (nationalist) called on Shaykh Ali 
Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah to resign for referring to his cousin and 
former Oil/Finance Minister Shaykh Ali Al-Khalifa Al-Sabah in 
a May 12 interview as his "ustadh" (teacher or master) and 
saying that he consults him occasionally on oil issues. 
Shaykh Ali Al-Khalifa is one of five former senior officials 
of the state-owned Kuwait Oil Tanker Company (KOTC) accused 
of embezzling more than $100 million during the Iraqi 
occupation in 1990-91; three of the officials were tried by 
the British High Court in November 1998 and found guilty. 
Some also suspect Shaykh Ali Al-Jarrah of wrongdoing since he 
served on the board of one of the banks where the embezzled 
funds were deposited.  If he does not resign, the MPs plan to 
submit a grilling request on June 10 and grill the Minister 
on June 25.  The other opposition bloc, the 17-member Islamic 
Bloc, is split on the grilling: several of its members have 
expressed support for it, but the Islamic Constitutional 
Movement's (ICM) six MPs, while criticizing Shaykh Ali 
Al-Jarrah's comments, have opposed the grilling and called 
for greater cooperation with the Government. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) This is just one of several high-profile corruption 
cases that have recently captured public attention and 
resulted in stormy sessions in Parliament.  During the May 15 
session, MPs traded barbs over corruption and accused each 
other of using their official positions for personal gain. 
One independent tribal MP shocked the country when he told 
one of his colleagues to "eat shit" and invited him to step 
outside.  The session got so heated the Speaker was forced to 
adjourn Parliament until its next regularly scheduled meeting 
May 28.  The current controversy over the Oil Minister is the 
third major grilling threat mounted by opposition MPs since 
the formation of the Cabinet in March.  Initially, many 
Kuwaitis were optimistic the composition of the new Cabinet 
would foster greater cooperation with Parliament, but this 
has since turned to pessimism and frustration as tensions 
continue to rise. 
 
¶4.  (C/NF) While many Kuwaitis are increasingly prone to 
blame Parliament for the lack of progress on important 
legislation, some believe certain members of the ruling 
family, namely Shaykh Ahmed Al-Fahd, are intentionally 
stoking tensions between the Government and Parliament to 
undermine Parliament's reputation and force its dissolution. 
An Islamist staffer in Parliament told PolOff May 28 he gave 
the Assembly a "50-50 chance" of being dissolved before the 
end of the year.  In any case, he argued, it definitely would 
not last all four years.  A member of the National Democratic 
Alliance, one of the liberal organizations opposing Shaykh 
Ali Al-Jarrah, told PolOff May 28 the National Action Bloc 
was determined to go ahead with the grilling if the Minister 
did not resign, despite the formation of a parliamentary 
committee to investigate the KOTC violations during the May 
28 session of Parliament.  Perhaps most telling, an 
influential, younger member of the ruling family close to 
Shaykh Ahmed Al-Fahd expressed frustration and exasperation 
with Parliament during a May 28 conversation with PolOff, 
arguing that the current political deadlock was the result of 
Kuwait's "juvenile and adolescent democracy." 
 
********************************************* * 
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: 
 
KUWAIT 00000836  002 OF 002 
 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s 
 
Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ 
********************************************* * 
 
LeBaron