The opposition “majority bloc” reiterated yesterday its total rejection to any change in the electoral law or allowing the revived 2009 National Assembly to meet under any pretext as it kick-started its “Monday Diwaniya” campaign for the forthcoming election, in an apparent revival of anti-government demonstrations in the late 1980s to protest the suspension of the 1985 National Assembly.

Leader of the bloc and speaker of the annulled 2012 Assembly Ahmad Al-Saadoun earlier urged supporters on his Twitter account to attend the first gathering in large numbers to express their rejection of any “illegal practices”.

Saadoun charged that some people who have never believed in democracy and the Assembly are attempting to undermine the election process and forge the will of the nation by changing the election system.

The issue, along with the possibility of the 2009 Assembly holding sessions, has infuriated the opposition, which insisted that it may resort to street protests in case the electoral system is changed.

But even the opposition does not seem in total agreement on how to react if the government went ahead and amended the election system or the number of votes that a voter can cast after hawks within the majority called for boycotting the forthcoming Assembly elections.

A group from the majority however believes that it is unwise to boycott the election because the opposition will be the main loser. Some MPs, like Mohammad Hayef for example, have called for contesting the election even if the number of constituencies was raised to 10 from five and the number of candidates voters can select is reduced from four to just two.

The opposition is expected to take a firm decision on the issue within the coming days or may be after the 2009 Assembly is dissolved, which is expected to take place by the end of July or early August. Fresh elections must be held within 60 days of dissolving the Assembly, according to the constitution.

In another development, controversial member in the 2012 Assembly Mohammad Al-Juwaihel was released by the appeals court yesterday on a KD 1,000 bail as the court set July 30 a date for issuing a verdict.

Juwaihel was last month sentenced to two years in jail by the lower court for defaming former MP Dhaifallah Buramia during a television program about two years ago. Police arrested Juwaihel and jailed him on June 26. He has been serving his term since then.

But the judge yesterday accepted a plea by his lawyer to free him on bail until the new verdict is issued.

Separately, a Kuwaiti lawyer yesterday filed an urgent lawsuit urging the court to suspend all flights of Kuwait Airways Corp (KAC) on grounds of deteriorating safety conditions. Hawra Al-Habeeb called in her lawsuit for the court to appoint a team of experts who should carefully examine KAC’s ageing fleet to establish if it is fit to operate.

“The malfunctions at Kuwait Airways planes pose a serious danger to passengers’ lives while the government has failed to take any measure,” Habeeb said in a statement after filing the suit. The court has not set a date for the case but is expected to do so in the coming days.

The lawsuit comes just a day after communications minister and KAC chairman Salem Al-Othaina announced that the government has decided to ground between three to five aircraft for frequent mechanical problems.

The minister also said that the government will consider grounding more aircraft as a precaution to safeguard the lives of passengers.

The new moves come after a Kuwaiti plane on a flight from Kuwait to Jeddah last Wednesday escaped disaster after one of its engines exploded while a second broke down.

The plane made an emergency landing at Madinah airport. Kuwait has delayed plans to privatise the loss-making carrier and decided instead to restructure the airline after private buyers offered a low price.

Kuwait Airways has posted a loss in all but one of the past 21 years, amounting to more than $ 2.7 billion. Losses are covered by the state because the carrier is entirely government-owned.