Tribunal to Probe Alleged Transfers by Kuwait ex-PM

Kuwait's public attorney has asked a special judicial tribunal to probe allegations the former premier transferred public funds into his overseas accounts, press reports said on Wednesday.

The action by Dherar al-Asousi came after he received a complaint from a Kuwaiti lawyer who claimed he had evidence to substantiate the allegations, the al-Watan newspaper reported.

The tribunal, which looks into allegations against serving and former ministers, will rule whether the complaint is serious enough to merit legal proceedings against ex-premier Sheikh Nasser Mohammed al-Ahmed al-Sabah.

The government on Thursday asked the Audit Bureau, the state's accounting watchdog, to examine the alleged transfers and opposition MPs plan to form a parliamentary commission of inquiry.

Opposition MP Mussallam al-Barrak charged in October that Sheikh Nasser, a senior member of the ruling family, transferred around $200 million of public funds into his overseas accounts through the central bank and the foreign ministry.

The previous government, which resigned in November following unprecedented youth-led street protests, has denied any wrongdoing, saying that the former premier had returned the money to the government agencies.

The allegations prompted then foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed al-Sabah, also a senior member of the ruling family, to resign in October when Barrak sent him a series of questions about the issue.

Three opposition MPs had filed to question the former prime minister over the alleged transfers and another corruption scandal in which 13 former MPs are accused of accepting illegal bank deposits worth an estimated $350 million.

The opposition, which holds a majority in the legislature after winning a February 2 general election, has submitted formal requests to set up parliamentary commissions of inquiry into both scandals.