Parliament's finances are resentful because promises of expediting sending the budget have not been

POSTED ON[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] BY [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

[size=52]Parliament's finances are resentful because promises of expediting sending the budget have not been fulfilled[/size]

[size=45]Baghdad / Firas Adnan[/size]
[size=45]The Parliamentary Finance Committee seemed pessimistic about the possibility of sending the budget soon, stressing that all the government's justifications for delaying it have disappeared, stressing that the dispute over the share of the Kurdistan region is not the main reason behind this delay.[/size]
[size=45]Committee member Jamal Cougar said, "The talk about the budget law's imminent arrival in Parliament has become boring, and we have stated over the past three months that days separate the government from sending the project, but none of these promises have been fulfilled until the present time."[/size]
[size=45]Cougar added, "Indications indicate that there is no optimism about the imminent sending of the budget law, because the government was able to do so for a while, perhaps at the end of last year."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The variables that some invoke do not take time except for days, including two issues, including the adjustment to the exchange rate of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar, or the change in oil prices in the global market."[/size]
[size=45]And Cougar indicated that “changing the exchange rate led to an increase in the deficit rate, estimated at between 12 to 15 trillion dinars, and the government has two options, and there are no third ones, either pressing unnecessary expenditures, or canceling some doors, and these measures do not require a delay of about three months.” .[/size]
[size=45]He explained, “The Kurdistan region’s share of the budget is not the core point of contention,” inferring that “previous budgets left the dispute over this share with paragraphs that are discussed at the end, and they were passed without the approval of the region’s representatives in Parliament.”[/size]
[size=45]Cougar pointed out, "Parliament gives the budget its right, meaning: discussing all paragraphs and numbers, and this is considered at the core of parliamentary work."[/size]
[size=45]He promised, “The government’s delay in sending the law has exceeded all justifications,” noting that “the committee has called more than once for the need to expedite the completion of the draft budget.”[/size]
[size=45]However, Cougar expressed his regret, because “Finance Minister Taif Sami did not attend the House of Representatives since she assumed her ministerial duties in the government of Muhammad Shia’ al-Sudani.”[/size]
[size=45]And he stressed, “The ball is in the government’s court, given that preparing the budget is the exclusive responsibility of the executive authority represented by the Federal Council of Ministers.”[/size]
[size=45]And Cougar continues, “Parliament’s responsibility begins from the day it officially received the budget, through the first and second readings, and then discussions and approval.”[/size]
[size=45]And he added, “The committee has the right to hold meetings with all public spending units in order to identify the expenditures it needs in the budget law.” Previously on all points within the State Administration Alliance.[/size]
[size=45]And Cougar concluded, that “the tasks of the House of Representatives on the law are to transfer between the chapters of the budget or reduce its total amounts, but if it wants an increase, then this depends on two conditions that are achieved together, namely the existence of a necessity for this increase and the approval of the Council of Ministers.”[/size]
[size=45]Unlike Cougar, committee member Moein Al-Kadhimi expresses his hope that the law will be sent during the current month so that Parliament can devote itself to discussing it.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Kadhimi continued, "The budget amounts will reach 196 trillion dinars," stressing that "a very good amount has been allocated to the investment side, estimated at 80 trillion dinars."[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out, "The agreements with the Kurdistan region regarding its share of the budget have reached advanced stages, and thus we will ensure that they are passed within the Council as soon as possible."[/size]
[size=45]Al-Kadhimi relied on “previous agreements within the State Administration Alliance, after which the government was formed, to speed up the approval of the budget as soon as it reaches Parliament.”[/size]
[size=45]For his part, Ahmed Al-Saffar, the committee’s rapporteur in the former parliament, stated that “the budget in Iraq is of a political nature par excellence.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Saffar continued, "Most of the important materials are decided and passed according to political consensus, especially with regard to the investment budget and the shares of the Kurdistan region and the provinces."[/size]
[size=45]And he pointed out, “These articles are a reason for delaying the approval of the budget,” explaining that “Iraq did not enact the budget for the year 2022, so all investment spending has stopped, and this causes an increase in unemployment and poverty rates and damage to the monetary situation.”[/size]
[size=45]And Al-Saffar stated, “Any delay in approving the budget, more than we are at the present time, will have negative economic and social effects.”[/size]
[size=45]And he cannot, “give perceptions about the law, especially with regard to the expected deficit in it, until it is officially sent to Parliament.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Saffar expresses his extreme surprise, because “the government has been declaring for a month that it will send the law to parliament within days, and this promise has not been fulfilled until now.”[/size]
[size=45]And while the officials are quoted as saying that “oil prices and the change in the exchange rate of the dollar are the reason for not sending the law,” but he believes that “the political differences are what hinders his access to parliament.”[/size]
[size=45][You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]