Monday, May 17, 2021

WOTS MON MAY 17 21 The deterioration of security is hampering Iraq's investments

 WOTS MON MAY 17 21 



These are the articles I discussed on the My FX Buddies Podcast Today


Kurdish delegation to visit Baghdad tomorrow, Wednesday

link

Member of the Parliament of the Kurdistan Region, Othman Karim, confirmed, on Monday, that a Kurdish delegation will arrive in Baghdad tomorrow, Wednesday, to discuss the latest technical developments regarding the budget agreement.
Karim said in a statement to "the information", "The delegation is likely to arrive in Baghdad next Wednesday and include a group of ministers and will meet with specialists in the federal government for an understanding on the issue of the budget and the delivery of oil to Baghdad."

He added that "despite the vote on the region’s share in the budget, the Kurdistan’s share of the budget has not yet been sent due to lack of agreement on the technical points of the budget agreement, but overall, the issue is still complicated."

The Parliamentary Finance Committee confirmed, yesterday, Sunday, that the Kurdish delegation, which will visit Baghdad soon, will end the technical dispute between Baghdad and Erbil regarding oil prices. 

Iraq is on the verge of extreme heat waves

link

Weather forecast, Sadiq Attiyah said, on Saturday, that expectations indicate that Iraq is on the verge of severe heat waves during the summer due to the lack of rain during the winter season.

Attia said in a post on social media that the weather this week indicates a gradual rise in temperatures, to reach its peak next Thursday. 

He added, "We are on the threshold of welcoming the summer climate season, and future expectations indicate that heat waves will be very hot at expected intervals during the months of July and August, with repeated occurrence of dust storms during the day from mid-June to the end of July."

And he added that this is due "to the activity of the surface winds and the drought of the soil resulting from the scarcity of rain in the 20/21 season, which resulted in soil disintegration and the lack of vegetation cover, particularly from the center, west and south of the country."

Parliamentary Finance: $ 15 a barrel of oil surplus from the price determined by the budget law

link

 The Parliamentary Finance Committee revealed, on Saturday, that there is a surplus in the price of a barrel of oil calculated in the General Budget Law for the current year.

Committee member Jamal Cougar told Shafaq News; “Oil prices are close to $ 65 per barrel, but the price calculated in the budget law for the current year is $ 45.”

He added that “the surplus in oil prices is about $ 15 per barrel,” noting that “this money goes to oil expenditures, including service contracts and licensing rounds, which are estimated at 16 trillion dinars.”

And Couger said, “The net remainder of a barrel of oil is $ 45, which is actually calculated in the budget law.”

Member of Parliamentary Finance: The street will be inflamed due to the continuing repercussions of the dollar price increase

link

A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Thamer Theban, confirmed today, Friday, that the continuing repercussions of raising the price of the dollar will make the Iraqi street inflamed, describing it as a floundering policy.
Theban said, "The central bank’s flawed policy regarding raising the sale of the dollar considered it a crime against our people, especially those with limited income."


He added that "there are mafias of corruption was behind the support of the policy of raising the selling price of the dollar against the dinar , " noting that " the central bank does not need to raise the price of the dollar but needs to control and accounting banks banking and companies that manipulate money laundering this to address the serious phenomenon."
He pointed Zeban That "the policy of the Central Bank will make the Iraqi street fiery as a result of the continuing repercussions of the exchange rate hike."

Iraq displaces Saudi Arabia from the top oil-importing countries to India

link

India's imports of Saudi oil have decreased significantly, while Iraq has the lion’s share of India’s oil imports, despite the recent reduction of its oil imports in general as a result of the repercussions of the Corona epidemic, as it decreased in February by 18.3% on an annual basis to 15.24 million Tons (106 million and 860 thousand barrels), registering the largest annual decline since October 2020.
India also decided to diversify its sources of oil after it accused OPEC of raising oil prices due to the cuts it had recently made, to which the Saudi Energy Minister would respond by using the stored oil it had bought. At low prices during the low prices at the beginning of last year 2020
And as a result; The Indian Ministry of Oil urged local refiners to diversify their crude resources and reduce dependence on the Middle East, which reduced dependence on the Middle East from 64% of imports in 2016 to 60% in 2019.
As a result, India's oil imports from Saudi Arabia decreased by 42%. % During the month of February to 445,200 thousand barrels per day, while the share of the United States increased to 545,300 thousand barrels per day, making it the second largest oil exporter to the country after Iraq, which was able to ship 867,500 thousand barrels per day.

Parliamentary Finance talks about the continuation of the current exchange rate of the dollar for the next four years


On Sunday, the Parliamentary Finance Committee described setting up a schedule of the dollar’s exchange rate as it is now for four years as “illogical”.

A member of the committee, MP Muhammad al-Shabaki, said in a statement, to Al-Maalouma Agency, that “setting up a four-year schedule to restore the dollar’s exchange rates to normal is illogical and contains many inaccuracies,” indicating that “the scheduling of exchange rates is not subject to monetary policy.”

He added, "The increase in exchange rates was part of the government's monetary policy to fill the deficit in some economic areas, and this matter cannot be generalized to the rest of the years."

He pointed out that "determining the exchange rates and monetary policy shall be annually according to the needs of the state."

The deterioration of security is hampering Iraq's investments

link

Iraqi MPs have warned of the impact of the security decline in the country on the government's plans in the investment sector and attracting foreign and Arab companies, stressing that the threat is no longer limited to ISIS attacks only, but that armed militias impose their hegemony in a number of cities, especially Baghdad, northern and western Iraq. Compound investor fears.

Parliamentarian, Nada Shaker Jawdat, said, "Although Iraq is a promising country for investment, and it needs to advance in the health, educational and other sectors in all, the absence of the security aspect led to the reluctance of investors to work in it." She explained in a statement to a local radio, that "the repeated targeting and lack of control over the internal situation, the violation of external sovereignty and military parades, in addition to the language of threat and intimidation (referring to the armed factions), represented clear messages that led to a decline in investment in Iraq."
The MP was surprised that the government did not disclose the parties behind the missile strikes, stressing that "it is unreasonable that the government has not yet determined the perpetrator and the reasons for the continued firing of rockets at vital and important places. In addition to this, ISIS activity on the outskirts of a number of governorates", considering that All these factors negatively impacted companies ’investment in Iraq.
The decline in investment is not only dependent on the security file, but the armed parties and factions also affect the file, through their interference in the work of companies and their extortion, in order to obtain financial gains.

In turn, a member of the Parliamentary Economic and Investment Committee, Ali Saadoun, confirmed to Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed that "the economic situation is directly related to the security file, while capital, investors and companies are not ready to enter Iraq if there is no appropriate security environment," pointing out that "that" "It requires the government to create the appropriate conditions to protect companies and prevent bargaining and extortion, which is exposed to it by political parties and armed groups, as many companies left Iraq because of the harassment." 

He pointed out that "the retreat of the security file is not borne by the government alone, but by political forces and parties, and dealing with the failure of the security aspect, the lack of weapons, the judiciary, and the remnants of ISIS, needs everyone's cooperation with the government."
However, the “Fatah Alliance”, the political wing of the “Popular Mobilization Forces,” held the government responsible for this security retreat and its negative effects on the investment file in the country.

The deputy of the coalition, Abbas Al-Zamili, told Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed that "the impact of harassment against investment companies in Iraq is clear in the investment file. The government is supposed to provide a safe environment for investors and investment companies, and to support that, but unfortunately there is government neglect of this file." ".

He added, "The security file is part of the harassment that investors are subjected to, and it is a lot of harassment, including corruption, extortion and murderous red tape, as many projects were delayed and disrupted because of that.

Below here is the regular WOTS "Word on the Street" daily report for the day:

 The exchange rates of the dollar and some currencies as well as precious metals in the local markets on Monday (May 17, 2021), according to the monitoring of specialists.   

  

Baghdad - Al-Kifah Stock Exchange  

148,500  

....  

Price in exchange (approximate)  

148,000  

149,000  

——————————  

Basra / Stock Exchange  

148,500  

——————————  

Erbil / Bursa  

148,575 



The Markets:
The Asian markets closed mixed NIK down by .92% HSI up by .59% SHANG up by .78%
The UK markets are currently trading in the red from .07% to .87% 
Our futures are currently trading in the red  DOW at 34227 down  by .27% SNP at 4159 down by .24% NDX at 13345 down  by .31%

Precious Metals:
Gold is green  at 1849 Silver is green  at 27.73 Copper is green at 466 Platinum is green at 1233 
Brent 68 WTI  65   Bitcoin: 45,392 10 yr yield: 1.62

Favorite Currencies Forex Quotes

SymbolBidAskHighLowOpenChangeTime
 USD/IQD  1432.0000  1481.4000 1457.9000 1455.3000 1455.3000  0.9000 10:47
 USD/VND  23046.0000  23048.0000 23047.7800 23047.2900 23047.7800  21.7800 22:47
 USD/CNY  6.4384  6.4404 6.4425 6.4347 6.4361  0.0021 05:20
 USD/KWD  0.3005  0.3015 0.3004 0.3004 0.3004  -0.0005 05:05
 GBP/USD  1.4107  1.4107 1.4119 1.4078 1.4096  0.0017 05:20
 USD/IRR  42000.0000  42210.0000 42097.5000 42097.5000 42097.5000  0.0000 00:00
 USD/IDR  14312.0000  14312.0000 14315.0000 14198.0000 14198.0000  36.0000 05:20

Biden speaks at 1pm eastern
Things in the News:

Iraqi Articles:

Oil prices rise with tensions in the Middle East

link

On Monday, oil prices rose as a result of instability in the Middle East region after Israel launched a major attack on the Gaza Strip, which threatens its expansion and its impact on the surrounding oil-rich areas, but a new wave of Covid-19 restrictions in Asia raises fears Reduced demand.

Tensions increased in the Middle East after Israel launched a major attack on the Palestinian Hamas organization, which heralds a war that could expand in the region and threaten foreign companies operating in the oil fields in the region and stop them from working.

However, the recovery of the main US pipeline network from supply concerns and a new wave of Covid-19 restrictions in Asia has brought back fears of reduced demand.

Brent crude futures rose 5 cents, or 0.08%, to $ 68.77 a barrel by 05:36 GMT, and WTI rose 7 cents, or 0.1%, to $ 65.42

The two decades jumped about 2.5% on Friday and were able to make slight gains last week, marking the third consecutive weekly increase.

Investors have remained wary about concerns that the fast-spreading coronavirus, first detected in India, will spread to other countries.

Some Indian states said on Sunday they would extend COVID-19 lockdowns to help contain the pandemic that has killed more than 270,000 people in the country. There are concerns that the nation's annual budget may dwindle as it fails to take into account the crippling second wave of COVID-19 infections.

Meanwhile, US energy companies added oil and natural gas rigs for the third week in a row as higher crude prices pushed some drilling workers back to the well plate.

The dollar dilemma halts reconstruction in al-Anbar: rabble remains until further notice

link

Soaring prices of building materials have halted the reconstruction of the war-ravaged houses in al-Anbar governorate, west of Iraq. 

Al-Anbar and several other governorates in the north and west of the country were the arenas of fierce battles between Iraqi forces and ISIS militants over three years (2014-2017). That war destroyed a large proportion of infrastructure and houses.

Since ISIS's defeat in 2017, Al-Anbar has been undergoing active reconstruction, but the ever-rising building materials' prices have hindered many citizens' plans to rebuild their houses.

Dollar and dinar dilemma

"The high prices of construction materials have prompted citizens, especially low- and middle-income people, to stop rehabilitating and building their homes," said Moayed Al-Dulaimi, Fallujah's administrator. 

"This also interrupted their return to their territories, which further complicated the process of closing the displaced persons' file," Al-Dulaimi stated to Shafaq News agency, calling for "The intervention of local authorities and the Ministry of Industry to provide construction materials at affordable prices or provide them in installments so that citizens whose houses were destroyed during the war against ISIS can leave the displacement camps and return to their houses."

The Central Bank of Iraq devalued the local currency, the dinar, against the U.S. dollar late last year from 1,190 dinars per dollar to 1,450 dinars.

Projects suspended for further notice

"I stopped rebuilding my house more than four months ago because the prices of building materials have risen dramatically. I can no longer continue to rehabilitate my house, which was destroyed during the war against ISIS," said Mahmoud Munif, "The government wants us to return to our territories. Yet, it has neither been able to compensate us for our destroyed homes nor have it helped us rehabilitate them. Instead, the government has reduced the price of the dinar as well as our salaries. Hence, we can no longer even make a living, so how can we build our homes?"

The citizen Talal Obeid said, "I prefer to stay in a rented house than build my house at twice the previous price. I cannot bear debts other than the amounts I borrowed from my relatives to pay the rent of the house I currently live in."

He continued, "Five years have passed during which the government repeatedly promised to pay compensation for our homes that have been destroyed by the war, the sole underprivileged of which is the marginalized poor citizen."

"After all that, the government increased the dollar's price, which raised the price of construction materials, food, and medicines. We no longer hope that this government will give us any service, as it stole everything," Talal added.

Security is the key to progress 

Industry Minister, Manhal Al-Khabbaz, stated, "The situation is almost back to normal in Al-Anbar. I think safety is the most important way to attract funding, industries, trade, and all other economic activities." 

He continued, "Many factors control the issue of competition, the first of which is the availability of raw materials, prices of fuel and electricity, the provision of manpower, and others."

"We strive to provide the best for Al-Anbar's people and Iraq in general. Now the citizen, who was looking for the cheapest, is looking for the best. Iraqi products are the best, but it needs proper marketing and preparations to deliver it appropriately," Al-Khabbaz added.

Reviving national industry is the only solution

"The rise in the dollar has had a significant impact on the construction materials prices. That has led citizens to give up constructing and rehabilitating their houses after they were destroyed during the war against ISIS. That also affected the process of returning the displaced people," said economist Salman Al-Jumaili.

He added, "The majority of the construction materials is imported and depends entirely on the dollar prices."

"To solve that, national production must be activated, especially since Iraq owns many suspended factories that produce building material. The concerned authorities must revive them, particularly the cement, bricks, and glass factories," Al-Jumaili concluded.

Will the 2021 budget be able to restore economic growth?

link

 

Will the 2021 budget be able to restore economic growth?

 

The state’s general budget is defined as the government’s program, through which it aims to achieve its contents within a year, and it is represented in eight dimensions (political, economic, financial, social, accounting, administrative, legal, and informational), but the circumstances of the year 2020 caused difficult situations for Iraq in managing its situation Financial, from the drop in oil prices, and the repercussions of the Corona pandemic, as economic growth declined by a large rate (- 11 percent), and therefore the 2021 budget had to address this, with allocations aimed at developing the productive and service sectors to activate economic activity, so will the 2021 budget be able to restore growth Economic growth and its transformation from negative to positive growth?

Prof. Ahmed Omar Al-Rawi from the Al-Mustansiriya Center for Arab and International Studies explained the possibility of this by saying: “Before answering, the budget preparation and the reasons for its delayed approval should be reviewed, represented by discussions and the loss of the first quarter of 2021, and thus it recognized its basic items prepared by the government, such as adopting the foundations in calculating public revenues. (Exporting 3,250 million barrels of oil per day, including 250,000 barrels from the Kurdistan region, calculating the price of $ 45 per barrel, and adopting the dollar exchange rate of 1,450 dinars).

Al-Rawi added to Al-Sabah: “The budget has come out with a total spending volume of 129,993 trillion dinars, while public revenues are estimated at 101,320 trillion dinars and a deficit of about 28,672 trillion dinars, representing about 22 percent of the size of the budget, to remain The source of bridging the deficit gap is internal and external borrowing, which will exacerbate the public debt problem.

He believed that "the ability of the 2021 budget to activate economic activity is limited, as it does not take into account the economic sectors, and that the adjustment of economic growth will be subject to high oil prices, and that the allocations approved for the productive sectors are very small in comparison to the challenges facing those sectors."

The narrator explained the repercussions of the delay in the budget on the economic situation that “it led to a delay in the implementation of the government program within three months, the suspension of activity and the service and investment programs included in the budget, and the disruption of employment in public sector jobs, as well as the impact of the private sector by disrupting the implementation of investment programs, and thus worsening unemployment.” . 
Stressing that «the exchange rate adjustment to 1450 dinars to the dollar, led to a reduction in the real value of individual income by not less than 25 percent, which affected people with limited incomes as a result of high prices, bringing the percentage of those living below the poverty line to more than 27 percent of the population of Iraq» .

"Reducing incomes as a result of changing the exchange rate will lead to a contraction of economic activity, due to the rise in prices, which will exacerbate the phenomenon of unemployment, which has become worrisome, as a result of its reaching more than 30 percent of the workforce."
He added that «the adoption of the budget on borrowing to fill the deficit in the budget, will exacerbate the size of public debt, which is expected to reach the end of 2021 to about 144 trillion dinars, and although the budget indicated its endeavor to reduce the deficit within its minimum limits, we find that its percentage amounts to 22 percent of the size of the budget. And about 16 percent of the gross domestic product ». 

Al-Rawi suggested “adopting rationalization in spending through serious and effective programs and policies, including the restructuring of some state institutions, by canceling and merging many institutions, in addition to setting supervisory controls in the budget law on exchange operations to reduce corruption, as well as setting controls to enhance non-oil revenues, Especially the revenues of the border crossings and the control of their revenues, including the region's ports, ”calling for“ the enactment of articles in the budget law to oblige the Ministry of Finance to inventory and re-evaluate state property, especially real estate, to enhance oil revenue.
 

CBI Update:  Just  a note:

They have been having auctions and the ISX has been trading regularly; the sites just don't update in time to put the information in this report, unless it is 
here.   

Click on the link above for the latest update.

The CBI for rate is 1460

The currency auction For May 17th , 2021 total sales amount $ . NO UPDATE

including   $0. CASH 

ISX Update:   

www.isx-iq.net/

Shares Traded: not updated for today
Value Traded: not updated for today 

5-16-2021   Intel Guru sheila  ...on Friday...my one and only bank source signed their non-dis-agree [non disclosure agreement] and would not be contacting me anymore. [but maybe good for us sheila]   yes, they said it good for all... and very likely to be extremely soon...

5-16-2021   Newshound/Intel Guru Petra  The price of oil is on the rise.  This only bodes well for all the Gulf cooperating countries, OPEC and of course it's going to impact Iraq as well because they are making money hand over fist right now with these higher oil prices.  That only drives success and strength in the currency itself.  It's all good. I'm excited...

5-16-2021   Intel Guru Frank26  When they de-peg from the American dollar they will automatically become compliant with the Swift Codes, with Article 8, which will allow them to say goodbye to the Swift Code and go into the QFS.  That is what we are looking for.  That is the definition of Article 8...

5-16-2021   Intel/Newshound Guru Holly   ...The gcr-Rv are progressing and we await for the final release of Dubai funds to kick off the rv. Everything is funded, audits done and compliance completed, we are just waiting for the release. I would expect that anytime between now and the 20th...

5-16-2021   Newshound Guru MilitiaMan    The things before us now are clearly showing a transformation. They have some many things done that have never been done before. The brass ring is  to be ready for the taking imo once they give the mechanism for the 2021 activation to pay the retro active payments...When bankers talk compliance, they are serious about it... I seriously like where we are now. By far better place than ever before from what I now see. Amazing things ahead...
Get caught up on last night's updates below and if you are not a dinarguru.com alert list yet now is a great time to do it...It's free as always and only takes a sec...If you invested in the dinar and spend time on the site you don't want to miss something very important because you're not on the list.  Click here to get on the list now.
5-15-2021   Newshound/Intel Guru Petra   Article:  "Saudi companies prepare to launch giant investments soon in Iraq "   [...The Saudi's don't play games and have little tolerance "postponement and delay tactics" if your not ready to do business they don't stick around. The fact that they seem to be moving forward with investment projects (according to this article anyway) again I find encouraging...]  Correct...Looks like they may get the first dance card with the queen of the Ball!

5-15-2021   Newshound Guru MilitiaMan   ..."According to the information, the salaries of employees and the region’s share in the budget law will be launched by the Federal Ministry of Finance after the Eid al-Fitr holiday."  They told us the mechanism was agreed on and was to be dealt with immediately after Eid Al-Fitr…Lets hope they have the international mechanism ready to roll out!!

5-15-2021   Newshound/Intel Guru Mnt Goat  Article:  " China agreement with Iraq will be activated soon, while noting that the annual volume of exchange between the two countries has reached 30 billion dollars."  this is very important as China needs the Iraqi oil real bad. This is a geopolitical move on China ’s part...

5-15-2021   Intel Guru Frank26  All I know is that they need to lift all of the restrictions.  They need to announce they are article 8 which is lifting all the restrictions.  This is the key to our investment.  Not the rate increase.  The international status of Article VIII to be announced.  The de-pegging of the American dollar so that then they are free.  They're liberated...

5-15-2021   Newshound/Intel Guru Petra  They came out with some matrix that I was frankly kind of surprised.  They said 99% of the citizens in Iraq now have cellphones.  That's massive.  And over 75% of them are connected to the internet.  Put that in your about digitization and being able to safely and securely transfer money both internally and externally...

5-15-2021   Newshound Guru Kaperoni   If the Iraqi dinar is ever going to appreciate in value it will be as the IMF says..."a predictable and gradual appreciation."...

5-15-2021   Intel Guru MarkZ   [Are we going to get heavily taxed?] That does not make sense to me….I am told its already covered in the exchange…   [Consult with your tax professional at the appropriate time.]

5-15-2021   Intel Guru Frank26  They [Iraq] has to have liberalization of movement...they need a free market - a liberalization of their currency is important for the their currency to be viable.  They need to be Article VIII - it's not that they have to raise the value of their currency.  That's nice and good but they need to announce that they're article VIII and international status.  All of the articles cast a long shadow that proves that they are...they have to just announce it.  And while they do that raise the value of your currency too.  The goal is 1 to 1 in-country and out-country and then float it...international status will equal an increase in their value. 


Catnip's Corner:
*************
ARTICLE 1 (from PM Kadhimi's website; posted only on Arabic side, not on English side; 17 pix)

The Prime Minister, Mr. Mustafa Al-Kazemi, inspects the families of a number of martyrs

The Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, inspected today, Saturday, a number of families of the heroic martyrs who were martyred in defense of the unity of Iraq and the security of its people.

Mr. Al-Kazemi asserted that the families of the martyrs are ours, and their sons sacrificed their pure blood for the sake of the prosperity and pride of Iraq.

His Excellency stated that the government is keen to inject the blood of its people, and is making utmost efforts for the security and stability of the country, stressing that the next phase will be devoted to construction and reconstruction for a better tomorrow for Iraq and its people, and we will not allow the mistakes of the past to be repeated, and we are working to correct the paths that took place during the past years. .

It is noteworthy that the Prime Minister visited the family of the hero martyr, first lieutenant Abu Bakr al-Samarrai, who was martyred at the hands of terrorist ISIS gangs in January 2017, and the family of the hero martyr Ali Zahrawi Nada al-Saadi, affiliated with the Ministry of Interior's Intelligence and Investigations Agency and who was killed in Palestine Street in the capital, Baghdad. On March 15, 2021, during a raid by gangs to smuggle antiquities and drugs, and the family of his brother, the hero martyr Alaa Zahraaw Nada Al-Saadi / Federal Police, who was killed on August 4, 2014 in Tikrit, during the raid on ISIS remnants with live bullets.

His Excellency also inspected the family of the hero martyr Wissam Al-Tikriti, affiliated with the Anti-Terrorism Service, and the family of the hero martyr Major General Abbas Hassan Jaber Al-Hamidway / Popular Mobilization Forces, who was martyred in Al-Dhuluiya district on December 28, 2014.

His Excellency accompanied the children of one of the martyrs' families on a tour with him to the markets.

Media Office of the Prime Minister
May 15, 2021

*************
ARTICLE 2 (from Government of Iraq twitter account)

#Eid Mubarak

*************
ARTICLE 3

Ala Talabani in an "urgent" message to the presidencies: Implement the budget provisions and send the rights of Kurdistan employees
2021.05.16 - 15:47
Baghdad - People

On Sunday, the MP for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Alla Talabani, called on the three presidencies in the federal government and the regional government to "bypass bureaucratic formulas and distribute the salaries of employees."

Talabani said in a letter "People" received a copy of it (May 16, 2021), that "the continued deduction of this percentage from the salaries of the region’s employees is an unjustified case."

She added that "the region’s authorities do not have a specific answer regarding the problem of organizing oil exports in accordance with what guarantees justice and rights for the citizens of Kurdistan’s share of Iraqi oil, and the rights of the federal state and the rest of the Iraqis in the region’s oil."

Below is the text of the message:

“Citizens in the Kurdistan region, like the rest of the Iraqis, were encouraged that the legislation of the Federal Budget Law would lead to the implementation of its provisions in a way that would reduce the burdens facing Iraqis in general, and citizens in the Kurdistan region in particular, and specifically employees.

But what happened is that the region’s employees still deduct 21 percent of their salaries, which are deductions that are no longer justified in light of the federal authorities ’commitment to pay the region’s employees’ salaries, as part of their greater commitment to pay the region’s dues from the general budget, which we all voted on in The Iraqi Council of Representatives,

The continued deduction of this percentage from the salaries of the region’s employees comes in an unjustified case, as the Iraqi national consensus has led to the settlement of the issue of the region’s share of the budget with what all parties have accepted, and thanks to the special perseverance and patience of the deputy prime minister of the region, Mr. Qubad Talabani, and his special status with the rest Iraqi officials.

On the other hand, statements by Mr. Asim Jihad, spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Oil, indicated that the region’s authorities have not yet delivered any quantities of oil or oil revenues according to the general budget, which is something that Dr. Gutiar Adel, the spokesperson for the region, could not answer objectively. Regrettably, he said, "He will respond to the statement of the spokesman of the Federal Oil Ministry as soon as possible regarding the export of oil and the federal government's share of it."

Firstly, this means that the region’s authorities do not have a specific answer regarding the problem of organizing oil exports in accordance with what guarantees justice and rights for the citizens of Kurdistan’s share of Iraqi oil, and the rights of the federal state and the rest of the Iraqis in the region’s oil.

It also means that the authorities in Erbil suffer from an office bureaucracy that is harmful to the supposed fraternal relations with the federal authorities in Baghdad and the rest of the Iraqi citizens. Meet their basic needs,

A vital issue related to financial resources, especially oil revenues, which are the main source of employee salaries and social welfare, and peshmerga dues as they fight and face terrorism daily, which calls for a quick practical step-by-step of the formulas of repulsive bureaucratic correspondence,

The authorities of the region in Erbil, especially the ministries of oil and finance, are required to provide quick answers to the reasons for the continued deduction of the salaries of employees in the region, as well as not to pay the prescribed amount of oil exports to the accounts of the Federal Ministry of Oil, and to resolve these forms away from slow and harmful correspondence.

The Iraqi people, certainly including the region’s employees and the rest of the citizens, are tired of maneuvers and bureaucracy, and they want to enhance the spirit of trust, cooperation and fraternal solidarity, in order to achieve the region’s employees and social benefits receiving their full dues, by overcoming all office obstacles and the need to commit to providing the region’s share of export. Oil to the federal authorities ...

We in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan bloc in the Iraqi parliament believe in the need for parliament to complete its oversight role, after it fulfilled its legislative role in approving the general budget, by urging all concerned parties to implement the budget provisions in a way that relieves all citizens, including the masses of the Iraqi people. Kurdistan Region ...

In the same context, we find one of the tasks of the Kurdistan Regional Parliament to follow up and question the authorities of the region about deductions from the entitlements of employees and the rest of the citizens, and to demand the implementation of the provisions of the budget law to remove everything that would disturb the positive relations between the federal government and the authorities of the region.

This is part of the guarantees of the process of building Iraq's prosperous civil, democratic, federal state to provide security, stability and a decent life for all citizens.

*************
ARTICLE 4

One billion dinars for each candidate ... a parliamentary bloc reveals a major move for "political money"
2021-05-16 10:42

Shafaq News / The head of the "Bayariq Al-Khair" parliamentary bloc revealed, on Sunday, "big" moves by political parties by granting one billion Iraqi dinars to each candidate to finance his election campaign, calling on the High Commission to implement the "Where did you get this" law and follow up on the source of funding.

Deputy Muhammad al-Khalidi told Shafaq News, “The influential political parties in the government exploited their influence and used political money to promote electoral campaigns,” pointing out that “some parties granted one billion Iraqi dinars to each candidate to finance his electoral campaign.”

Al-Khalidi added, "Some of the candidates have implemented large projects that cost one billion dinars, including the delivery of water and sanitation and paving the streets in villages and countryside in order to win and buy the votes of those areas within their constituencies.

Al-Khalidi stressed, "The High Elections Commission is required today to implement a law from where did you get this, and to follow up on the money spent by some political parties and candidates for election propaganda."

The next elections are scheduled to take place on the tenth of next October, according to what the Iraqi Council of Representatives voted to set a date for in a session held on January 19, 2021, amid government pledges to hold fair elections away from the power of weapons and political money.

*************
ARTICLE 5
Parliamentarians: Iraq has become a fertile environment for international intelligence
19:08 - 05/16/20210

On Sunday, the Parliamentary Human Rights expressed its concern about what is happening in the country of assassinations of activists and media professionals, prior to the elections.
Committee member Qusay Al-Shabaki said in a statement to Al-Maalouma agency, “We have great concerns, such as human rights, and we called on the government and security agencies to intervene immediately to stop these operations,” indicating that “Iraq has become a fertile environment for the presence of international intelligence, which plays a major role in mixing papers and creating chaos.”

He added, "Assassinations always take place before elections in order to create a chaotic situation whose goal is to postpone elections, mix cards and create chaos."
He pointed out that "the government and security agencies are responsible and that are supposed to protect activists and media workers and expose the people who are behind the scenes."
It is noteworthy that the country is witnessing assassinations of activists and media figures recently
*************

 

Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)