Representatives: The Commission requested 300 billion dinars to cover the costs of the local electio

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[size=52]Representatives: The Commission requested 300 billion dinars to cover the costs of the local elections[/size]

[size=45]Baghdad / Firas Adnan[/size]
[size=45]Representatives confirmed that the local elections require the allocation of 300 billion dinars, pointing to an agreement to hold them on the specified date before the twentieth of next December, calling on the Independent High Electoral Commission to complete all preparations and submit its logistical requests to the government.[/size]
[size=45]Representative Muhammad Anouz said, "The Parliamentary Legal Committee has hosted the Independent High Electoral Commission for a while, and we discussed with them the local elections."[/size]
[size=45]Anouz added, "The government had initially set a date for the elections in October, but the commission informed us that this date was not consulted about."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The Third Amendment Law of the Provincial Council Elections Law confirmed that local elections should take place no later than the twentieth of next December."[/size]
[size=45]And between Anouz, that “the Commission had demands related to funds and it is linked to the budget law, updating the voter register to know the new age owners who are entitled to vote and distributing cards amounting to one million and 700 thousand cards that were not distributed.”[/size]
[size=45]He stressed, "The commission inquired from the committee at the time about the parliament's position on it, and will it change it or is it retained, and will its membership remain for the judges?"[/size]
[size=45]Anouz explained, "These issues need a political decision, and until the present time, no new law for the Commission has been presented to the House of Representatives."[/size]
[size=45]And he stressed, "The Commission informed us that it needs six months, at least, to complete its technical tasks related to the electoral process, and this period is still available until the present time."[/size]
[size=45]Anouz believed that "disrupting or accelerating the elections for a month or a little more is ineffective, because the most important issue is the holding of elections based on the understanding and agreement of the political blocs."[/size]
[size=45]And he continues, "The extension that was for the previous provincial councils under legislation approved by Parliament was an unconstitutional measure, and the same is the case with regard to freezing these councils."[/size]
[size=45]Anouz noted, "Since the end of the session that began in 2013, the political blocs have had to maintain the functioning of the local councils according to official times, which are every four years."[/size]
[size=45]Representative Sherwan Al-Dobardani said, "The agreement of the State Administration Alliance is still valid to hold local elections in December of this year."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Dobardani added, "This matter has been put in place under the third amendment to the Provincial Council Elections Law, which was recently legislated."[/size]
[size=45]And he indicated, "The Independent High Electoral Commission presented a 3-page list of what it needs to conduct local elections, most notably the expenses that amount to 300 billion dinars."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Dobardani confirmed, "This amount is not related to the budget, because the government can lend them this amount until the enactment of this law, and it will be deducted later on, on the condition that the amount has gone to the Commission."[/size]
[size=45]And he continues, "The election date according to the law was supposed to be in November, but the Commission, before voting on this law, requested an additional month, and therefore the text came that the last date for the elections is on the twentieth of December."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Dobardani added, "This text means the possibility of holding local elections before that date, in light of completing the necessary technical and logistical preparations."[/size]
[size=45]In addition, MP Sarwa Muhammad confirmed, "The last date for the elections has been set by law, but the specific date will be by a decision of the Council of Ministers in consultation with the Commission."[/size]
[size=45]And Muhammad agreed with Al-Dobardani, that “these elections must take place on the scheduled date and may not be delayed, because that is a violation of the law.”[/size]
[size=45]She pointed out, "The importance of everyone feeling responsible towards this democratic process, and the need for citizens to cast their vote in choosing their representatives within the local councils."[/size]
[size=45]And Muhammad stated, "Iraq's reputation before the international community depends on several things, most notably respect for democracy and the peaceful transfer of power, and for the elected bodies to continue to carry out their work, and not to disrupt them for any reason."[/size]
[size=45]And it found that “all political blocs inside the parliament dome with the holding of local elections, and they have voted on the third amendment to the law and agreed on the importance of reviving local councils that have been suspended since 2019.”[/size]
[size=45]Muhammad concluded, by "inviting the Commission to exercise its duties fully to complete the preparations, and to submit its requests to the government in order to provide them, especially in terms of logistical requirements."[/size]
[size=45]Representative Muhammad Saadoun Al-Saihoud expresses his belief that «the nature of the candidates for the upcoming local elections will differ from the previous ones».[/size]
[size=45]Chihoud continued, "The success of these elections depends on the broad popular participation, especially with the reluctance that occurred in the last elections by boycotting a large number."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that "the political blocs should, in the next stage, convince their audience of the programs they carry," stressing "the importance of local elections, as they are of a service nature close to the citizen."[/size]
[size=45]Chihoud went on to say, "Parliament continues to fulfill its duties with regard to the elections, after the adoption of a law that provides justice, bypasses the gaps of previous experience, and guarantees real representation of citizens within the local councils."[/size]
[size=45]It is noteworthy that the Parliament had issued a law according to which it ended the work of the provincial councils in 2019 under the influence of the October Uprising, and it had recently legislated a new law to revive them and provided for merging them into one law with the general elections for the membership of the House of Representatives[/size]
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