Min 25º Max 41º FREE www.kuwaittimes.net NO: 16886- Friday, May 27, 2016 Bike riding Why am I LeBron and Love on the rise always power Cavaliers in Kuwait 7 hungry?23 over43 Raptors See Pages 4-6 Local FRIDAY, MAY 27, 2016 Local Spotlight Photo of the day Social media cooks By Muna Al-Fuzai [email protected] ocial media has not only changed traditional rela- tionships between individuals, but it has also given Srise to people who trade in people’s health, espe- cially food vendors. With the advent of the month of Ramadan, food sellers on apps like Instagram and WhatsApp have increased, and prices are high. I am wondering why there is no crackdown on those women and why they are being excluded from the municipality’s supervision regarding the conditions and standards of hygiene and safety, just like those that apply to restaurants and other food merchants. Why don’t they keep business records? I am also wondering why there are no price controls, and no medical exami- nation of workers. There has to be a round of inspec- tions by the municipality, as is the case for restaurants, cafeterias and others. It is a big mess and the municipali- ty and the interior ministry - represented by the cyber- crimes department - have to get involved. If there are cases of food poisoning or filthy and expired foodstuff at registered restaurants, there are cer- tain procedures to be followed. Every other day we hear about a restaurant that is closed for non-compliance with sanitary standards. But there has been an abnormal rise in online food sellers of all nationalities in the coun- try, so how will consumer protection be enforced and how to guarantee that someone is checking the food supply and prices? So far, no one is doing anything for protecting the consumer. A whole family can suffer poi- soning from contaminated food. There is neither municipality supervision nor com- merce or health ministry tours of these home kitchens. The cybercrime unit should also intervene because of the risk to people’s health, as the preservation of public health is one of the most basic duties of the state, regardless of the government agency responsible. Saudi Arabia has succeeded in resolving this matter. Those who want to set up such business ventures there need to have official registration, and those who violate this law are fined. This is one of the simplest things to maintain the health of the people from the risk of expo- sure to food poisoning or consuming expired items. The ministry of interior has the ability to identify these accounts and force their owners to register. Instagram cooks are becoming a trend that is out of control, put- KUWAIT: Contrasting scene of a man in dark profile against the popular shark tank at the Scientific Center in Ras ting people’s health at risk. Salmiya. — Photo by Yasser Al Zayyat How to dispute a rent increase By Faten Omar since the last increase and the contract has often than not, there is no English version of 7- The old rent amount should be paid to ended, and if the rent is 50 percent less than the contract, so foreigners fall victim to their the court (the tenant should check every f you are facing a huge increase in rent, the market rate. ploy and don’t have the courage to fight for month if the landlord has filed a com- you’re not alone. Apartment rental rates According to article 11 of legislative their rights. plaint against him). Ihave skyrocketed across Kuwait even as decree no. 35 of 1978 on real estate lease, the Kuwait Times has detailed the steps to 8- Attend the scheduled sentencing hear- summer approaches. Though most apart- law clearly states that the period stipulated in deal with landlords who raise the rent ings. ment dwellers have not seen salaries rise, the contract must be respected and followed against the law: 9- The case will be sent to a technical landlords are looking for ever higher returns. by both parties, the landlord is not entitled to 1- The tenant must go to the court in expert. Some landlords even ignore the five-year evict the tenant and the tenant cannot vacate his/her area. 10- The technical expert will go to the rule and raise rents against the law. Many the premises before the end of the contract 2- The tenant should fill the complaint apartment for examination. tenants are ignorant or unsure of what to do, term. In all cases, the rent increase should not form about raising the rent, which will be 11- The technical expert will decide the but a growing number of both local and exceed 100 percent of the amount agreed submitted to the court. right amount of rent to increase. expat tenants in Kuwait are not ready to give between the two parties. This percentage 3- Go to the information section inside 12- At the last sentencing hearing, the up without a fight. may be modified by a decree. the court. judge will review the technical expert’s The law stipulates that a landlord can Some landlords prepare a one-year con- 4- The mandoub of the court will go to report and accept, change or reject the raise the rent once every five years, and any tract to get around the law to ensure they the haris (janitor) of the building to give rent increase. increase other than this is illegal. At times, have the power to renew it and increase the him the ‘old’ rent. 13- If the landlord does not take the exact tenants are unaware of their legal rights and rent. Some landlords and companies disre- 5- If the haris does not take the rent, the amount of rent decided by the court, the so they agree to pay higher rents after every gard the law and try to take the tenant for a court will be reported of the non-receipt tenant has to file another complaint, but year or two. But the landlord can only ride. Unfortunately, they get lucky some- and this proves the case. this time at the court in the company of increase the rent if the tenant agrees to the times, especially since most expats are for- 6- A complaint will be submitted to the landlord’s area. proposed increase, five years have passed eigners and aren’t fluent in Arabic. More court to be presented to a judge. 14- Keep paying the ‘new’ rent at the court. CONDOLENCES Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief, management and staff convey their deepest condolences to the family of Saleh Mahmoud Abu Sabra (Abu Al-Tayyeb — former colleague) on his sad demise May Allah Almighty bestow His mercy on him FRIDAY 27 MAY 2016 Local Fun in the sun at loclocalal water park FRIDAY 27 MAY 2016 Local Mohammed Khoursheed, General Manager and Board Member of Aqua Park. By Nawara Fattahova Tripo was purchased at a cost of $250,000. “We bought this slide at the his is the perfect time to enjoy World Water Park Association Conference water activities and games, and held in Palm Springs in California. This TAqua Park is the ideal place for a slide will be installed by the beach, and fun and exciting day out. Aqua Park, we are planning to launch it by the end which opened in 1995 as the first water of June to be ready for Eid. We have park in the country, strives to provide increased the price of the entrance ticket quality entertainment by improving its from KD 3.750 to KD 4.250, not only services every year. because of this new ride, but because we have decreased the ticket price of this Aqua Tripo Continued on Page 6 After being closed for a few months in winter, the water park reopened to welcome visi- tors last month with a new sur- prise - the all new Aqua Tripo. “This slide is 15 meters high and with three different func- tionalities. It’s suitable for all ages and is equipped with a sprinkler system, so it’s misted by water during sliding,” said Mohammed Khoursheed, General Manager and Board Member of Aqua Park. Aqua FRIDAY 27 MAY 2016 Local slide that is not included in the entrance ticket from KD 1 to 500 fils,” he said. Aqua Park also offers special rates for groups, ministries, banks and other institutions. “Holding an open day is a great opportunity for employees of an organi- zation to gather outside the work environment and enjoy their time. Any institution can book any day of their choice, and the park will be closed for others,” stressed Khoursheed. Safety Safety is a priority at Aqua Park. “We concentrate on all safety aspects. We demolished concrete platforms and steps at all towers and rebuilt them, as 20 years of opera- tions have passed. We did a lot of polishing and refurbish- ing of all slides including the fiberglass ones. Now all slides One of the most popular summer destinations in Kuwait, Aqua Park offers a variety of slides, swimming pools, and utilities are as new as they were 20 years ago,” he rides and games for kids. — Photos by Yasser Al-Zayyat explained. Aqua Park’s water is checked by the Ministry of Health on a regular basis. “Inspectors from the ministry come on regu- lar and surprise visits to take samples of the water to test in Days & Timings their laboratories, and we have passed all tests.