Manama: Kuwait's information minister has urged former lawmakers to give opportunities to young people to reach the parliament.
"We need a new national assembly and we ought to open a new chapter," said Shaikh Hamad Al Jaber Al Ali. "I sincerely hope the former MPS give a chance to young people, including me, to prove their competence. If we succeed, we will continue, but if we fail, we will move away. We have warmly applauded the decision by Jassem Al Kharafi not to run in the elections," Shaikh Hamad said.
Al Kharafi, the outgoing parliament Speaker, earlier this month said that he would not seek re-election and that he was keen on fresh blood in the constitutional decision-making institution.
Half way through the 10 day-registration process, the number of women candidates in the Kuwaiti parliament elections has risen to 13.
Thirty five Kuwaitis, including two women, signed up on Sunday, taking the total number of candidates to 222.
Around 400,000 people are scheduled to cast their ballots for the 50-member parliament on February 2 in the country's five electoral constituencies amid expectations that its composition will be changed by around 70 per cent over the previous one.
While hopefuls draw up plans to assert themselves in a highly competitive environment and win over voters, the interior ministry is set to launch an investigation into claims that some tribes organised private polls to agree on the candidates who will run for the parliament elections.
Despite repeated warnings that the pre-voting traditions were banned, five tribes on Saturday went ahead with their own selection process in the Fifth Constituency, prompting the Kuwait Transparency Society to file a report and hand it to the ministry.
