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RABIA ALTHANI 12, 1441 AH MONDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2019 28 Pages Max 21º Min 08º 150 Fils Established 1961 ISSUE NO: 18005 The First Daily in the Arabian Gulf www.kuwaittimes.net Trump tells American Jews At 50, Sesame Street still going Lebanon Sunni leaders back Joshua defeats Ruiz to take 6 he is Israel’s best friend 19 strong - and big honor awaits 24 Hariri to return as premier 25 back heavyweight crown Lawmaker questions education minister over school fee hikes Court backs shelving Dow case • Ex-justice ministers probed as anti-graft tips pour in By B Izzak and A Saleh gered a major political crisis in Kuwait when opposition MPs about a decade ago put tremendous pressure on Bahrain lift first Gulf Cup KUWAIT: MP Farraj Al-Arbeed yesterday asked the the government to scrap the joint venture agreement, education minister about the mechanism of increasing saying it was not in the interest of Kuwait. fees of private Arab and foreign schools in the country, Later, the company complained to an international saying that in some cases annual fee hikes reach five per- arbitrator which ordered Kuwait to pay the huge fine cent. The lawmaker asked the minister if there are any amid accusations by MPs that the whole issue involved laws and regulations or ministerial decisions that govern corruption. The lawmakers that time called on the gov- the change in school fees. Arbeed said private schools ernment to refer the case to the public prosecution to tend to raise their fees almost annually, reaching as high investigate the possibility of wrongdoing by officials of as five percent in some cases, making some families the oil ministry. But the public prosecution decided to unable to cope with this sharp increase in school costs. shelve the case after it found no wrongdoing. The gov- The lawmaker asked about the number of private ernment’s legal department appealed against the deci- schools that have operated under the education ministry sion to the criminal court, which decided yesterday that from 2010 to date, and inquired if those schools are clas- the prosecution’s decision was correct. sified on the basis of well-established rules. He asked if The Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) said yester- the ministry has registered any violations against the day that it has received 246 tips about potential cases of schools and requested the number of such citations in corruption and that over 14,000 senior government the past three years. employees have submitted their wealth disclosure forms Meanwhile, the criminal court yesterday supported a in accordance with the law, forming about 91 percent of decision by the public prosecution to shelve the Dow staff covered by the law. Chemical case in which Kuwait was ordered to pay a fine In a related development, the public prosecutor yes- close to $2.5 billion for unilaterally scrapping an agree- terday referred former justice ministers Yacoub Al-Sane ment with the US chemical company. The case had trig- Continued on Page 24 DOHA: Bahraini players celebrate after winning the 24th Arabian Gulf Cup final football match between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia at the Khalifa International Stadium yesterday. — AFP (See Page 28) lab animals. “This substance is found in minimal safe Diabetologist says amounts in many products including generic drugs. Many generic drugs for blood pressure and gastric acidity have been withdrawn for this reason, leaving Glucophage safe to only original branded drugs in use in Kuwait and the world,” he explained. use despite warnings Dhahi pointed out that the US Food and Drug Administration and other healthcare regulators in By Meshaal Al-Enezi Europe, Singapore and Poland are closely watching the percentage of this substance in generic metformin KUWAIT: Endocrinologist, diabetologist and head of drugs and that none of them were so far found to Kuwait Diabetes Society Dr Waleed Al-Dhahi refuted include dangerous levels of NDMA, and thus the drug recent warnings against using the diabetes drug met- was not withdrawn because its benefits outdo its harm. formin, denying that it is carcinogenic. Metformin is a “Singapore only withdrew three generic metformin standard medication during early stages of type 2 dia- drugs after examining 46 and patients were allowed to betes. It helps control high blood sugar and is marketed continue using the remaining products,” Dhahi said, under a number of brand names, including Glucophage. underlining that the warning does not apply to Dhahi said such reports will make diabetics around Glucophage from the original manufacturer. “The health the world become skeptical about using metformin, ministry has stressed that the generic metformin drugs which has been known as a safe medicine since the withdrawn in Singapore are not registered in Kuwait,” mid-1950s. He added the real issue is related to N- he added. nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a known carcinogen in Continued on Page 24 Screams, goodbyes as dozens killed in Delhi factory fire NEW DELHI: At least 43 people were killed yester- day in a devastating fire that ripped through a bag fac- tory in the congested old quarter of the Indian capital New Delhi, with survivors describing the screams of scores of trapped workers who were sleeping inside. The blaze was the worst in Delhi since 59 movie-goers NEW DELHI: A fire truck is seen along a street near the died in a cinema in 1997, with the city’s poor planning site of a factory where a fire broke out in the Anaj Mandi and enforcement of building and safety regulations area of the capital yesterday. — AFP often responsible for such deadly incidents. HH the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al- Tearful relatives spoke of receiving desperate calls Jaber Al-Sabah sent a cable of condolences yesterday from factory workers begging to be freed from the to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, expressing his inferno in the dark, poorly lit premises in the commer- sorrow over the factory fire tragedy. The Amir cial hub of Sadar Bazar from around 5:00am (23:30 expressed hope for a speedy recovery of those injured. GMT). One father who was trapped inside the four- HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber storey structure made a desperate phone call to ask Al-Sabah and HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al- that his children be looked after. Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah sent similar cables. Continued on Page 24 Saturday. The shooting Friday in a class- Saudi gunman room building at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida killed three sailors and wounded eight other people, includ- showed shooting ing two responding sheriff’s deputies, before police shot dead the assailant. videos at party The dinner party revelation came as authorities probed whether the shooter MIAMI: The Saudi military student who had any accomplices. “We’re finding out carried out a deadly shooting spree at a what took place, whether it’s one person US naval base showed videos of mass or a number of people,” President shootings at a dinner party the night Donald Trump told reporters. Mohammed Alshamrani before the attack, US media reported Continued on Page 24 2 Local Monday, December 9, 2019 Amir receives Crown Prince, top Kuwaiti officials at Bayan Palace KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets with His Highness the His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets with National Assembly Speaker Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. —Amiri Diwan and KUNA photos Marzouq Ali Al-Ghanem. KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh received National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. His Yousef Al-Mutawaa. Khaled, and Justice Yousef Al-Mutawaa. Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received Ali Al-Ghanem, as well as His Highness Sheikh Highness the Amir received as well the In the meantime, His Highness the Crown Furthermore, His Highness Sheikh Nawaf in Bayan Palace yesterday His Highness the Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. President of Kuwait’s Supreme Judicial Prince received at Bayan Palace Speaker received the Deputy Prime Minister, State Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al- Furthermore, His Highness the Amir Council (SJC) and the Cassation Court, and Ghanem, His Highness Sheikh Jaber Al- Minister for Cabinet Affairs, and Acting Jaber Al-Sabah. His Highness the Amir also received His Highness the Prime Minister President of the Constitutional Court Justice Mubarak, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al- Interior Minister Anas Khaled Al-Saleh. His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets with His Highness the Prime His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets with His Highness Sheikh Jaber Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah with Chief Justice Yousef Al-Mutawaa. meets with National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Ali Al-Ghanem. meets with His Highness Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al- His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Sabah meets with Deputy Prime Minister, State Minister for Cabinet meets with His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al- meets with Chief Justice Yousef Al-Mutawaa. Affairs, and Acting Interior Minister Anas Khaled Al-Saleh.