KUWAIT's emir may appoint a new prime minister or dissolve parliament but has few options to resolve an underlying standoff between Islamist deputies and the pro-Western government. The emir, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, has accepted the resignation of the government to thwart plans by deputies to grill the prime minister, a member of the ruling family, after a similar row prompted the previous cabinet to step down just months ago. Kuwait has had five cabinet lineups in three years and the political instability has delayed major economic reforms, including a $5 billion stimulus package and a plan to launch a financial regulator, though cabinet reshuffles do not usually affect the country's oil policy. “The signals indicate a dissolution. We're awaiting the decision,” liberal MP Mohammad Al-Abdul Jader told reporters. Previous rulers have gone so far as to suspend the assembly, which is dominated by Islamist, tribal and independent MPs and has a history of challenging the government, to avoid persistent disputes. Another deputy, Mohammad Al-Sager, said a full suspension of parliament was widely expected after the country lurched from one crisis to another in recent years. “There is a lot of talk in parliament corridors...that there is an inclination towards an unconstitutional dissolution but we hope this is not true,” he said, referring to a suspension. Mustafa Behbehani, a director at Gulf Consulting Co, said tensions between MPs and government were likely to continue even if a new prime minister got named and elections called. “The best solution is to change the prime minister and suspend parliament for a while...these repetitive crises delay economic reforms especially in the current global crisis,” Behbehani said. The world's seventh-largest oil exporter has an outspoken parliament with full legislative powers. The cabinet is accountable to parliament which can question ministers over state affairs including the country's oil sector and sovereign wealth fund. Bills by decree? Some investors even saw good news in the suspension of parliament. With no parliament, a caretaker government could go ahead with the stimulus package and other reforms, putting the onus on the next assembly to approve them as implementation would already be under way. “If parliament is dissolved, and a new election is called, the temporary government could in the meantime pass the bailout bill, the capital markets bill...” said Talal Al-Loghani, portfolio manager GCC, at Noor Financial Investment Co. Kuwaiti stock markets had risen for weeks on hopes that the cabinet's resignation and the possible dismissal of parliament would provide some reprieve from the bickering that has held up the important economic stimulus package aimed at alleviating the impact of the global financial crisis. But reflecting the continued uncertainty of the OPEC member's political future, Kuwaiti shares fell 1 percent on Tuesday after the ruler did not say when he would appoint a new prime minister or call elections. Others such as political analyst Shamlan Al-Eissa say parliament approval should not be taken for granted given the tense political climate that has repeatedly triggered the resignations of ministers or governments. He said the standoff would be especially likely to drag on if the ruler reappoints his nephew Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah as prime minister. “MPs don't want Sheikh Nasser back because they will question him again,” he said. Diplomats and analysts said Kuwait might return to the previous habit of appointing the crown prince as prime minister since lawmakers are less likely to question him in the House out of respect for his position as future leader. That does not, however, mean they could not pile pressure on other ministers. “This was considered before but it was disregarded to avoid any embarrassment for the crown prince,” Eissa said.
