Freezing the budget... What is the relationship between political money and elections in its delayed

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[size=52]Freezing the budget... What is the relationship between political money and elections in its delayed implementation?[/size]

[size=45]Four months have passed since the adoption of the Federal General Budget Law, but it has not been implemented yet, for reasons that specialists attributed to the delay that occurred in legislating the law and then in issuing implementation instructions, while others attributed it to the fear that its funds would be exploited in the local elections scheduled for December 18. / Next December.[/size]
[size=45]For the first time in its history, Iraq approved a three-year financial budget in a single draft law, which Parliament voted on last June. The government defended the step by saying that it aims to develop plans for important projects in the country, in addition to avoiding the problem of delaying the approval of financial budgets every year for several months.[/size]
[size=45]The budget for the current year and the next two years, according to the budget law, amounted to $153 billion, with an expected deficit of $48 billion, and the oil price was approved at $70 per barrel, as Iraqi oil exports constitute more than 96% of Iraq’s financial imports.[/size]
[size=45]After several months have passed since its approval date, the tripartite budget allocations have not been launched on the ground yet, which has opened the door to speculation and questions about the reasons behind the delay in implementing its provisions.[/size]
[size=45]What is the reason for the delay?[/size]
[size=45]In this context, a member of the Finance Committee in the Iraqi Parliament, Nermin Marouf, said, “The budget law was approved last June, and until instructions for its implementation were issued, more than half the year had passed, so the failure to implement the budget is due to the delay in enacting the law, and Then in issuing instructions to implement them by the Ministries of Finance and Planning.”[/size]
[size=45]Marouf explained, “The government continued to spend 1/12 of last year’s budget, so spending was limited to actual current spending and most of it was for salaries.”[/size]
[size=45]She explained that “the government needs to spend on investment projects in the current year, so that the ministries and governorates send their plans for investment projects, as spending on investment projects is not the same as current expenditures, but rather includes several stages of preparing the plans, approving them, and approving the projects in the Ministry of Planning.” And then announce it until the project is approved.”[/size]
[size=45]She added, “These projects are financed in installments and according to completion rates, and these take several months, until the investment budget is disbursed on the ground, and this is the first obstacle to not implementing the part related to the investment budget in the current budget.”[/size]
[size=45]Budget funds[/size]
[size=45]Regarding the fate of the budget funds as the end of the year approaches, Marouf explained, “The funds allocated to the investment budget are transferred to the next year allocated to the projects. These will not end, but rather the spending on these projects will continue until the end of the fiscal year.”[/size]
[size=45]She continued: “As for the unspent funds of the current budget, at the end of the year they become surplus funds from last year, and are rolled over to the next year, and added to the funds that will be allocated from next year’s budget, and this is according to the budget law and the financial management law.”[/size]
[size=45]A member of the Finance Committee indicated, “Before the end of the current year, the Ministry of Finance, through the Council of Ministers, is supposed to send new tables to estimate next year’s revenues and expenditures, but with the same texts as the current law.”[/size]
[size=45]Marouf pointed out that “the texts contained in the law, which are 78 legal articles, will not be changed, but only the estimated spending and revenue schedules for the coming year, so they must be sent again to the House of Representatives for approval, so that the government will be able to implement the budget for the coming year.” “.[/size]
[size=45]Electoral exploitation[/size]
[size=45]For his part, the Iraqi politician, Halim Salman, stated that “the Prime Minister - according to the leaks - put a ‘freeze’ on the flow of tripartite budget funds, for several reasons, including fear that the budget funds would be used to finance the provincial council elections.”[/size]
[size=45]Salman added, “This explains the lack of confidence of the government, senior management, and the Ministry of Finance in political parties and local governments that could exploit budget funds for the benefit of the elections.”[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that “these reasons have not been officially announced, but it seems that this matter is true, and despite the approval of the budget and the issuance of its instructions, there is still a delay in the process of releasing the funds, which makes it likely that what some politicians have said is correct.”[/size]
[size=45]Financial losses[/size]
[size=45]In turn, the economic expert, Jalil Al-Lami, saw that “the Sudanese government is now working to collect funds for the emergency support law that was approved during the time of the previous government, in order to finance some projects that have completion rates, since the remaining period of the year is not enough for the government to announce the projects.” And implementing new ones, or completing old projects, as they have been subject to extinction and a change in estimated cost prices.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Lami confirmed to the agency that “the delay in sending budget allocations will lead to the cancellation of contracts with international and local companies to develop new cities and governorate infrastructure, which will cost Iraq many losses due to the penal conditions that were placed in the contracts with those companies.”[/size]
[size=45]He concluded by saying that “the budget is the natural financial regulator for the functioning of institutions and departments at all civil and military levels, and for the country to avoid randomness in spending at a rate of 12/1, so there is no justification for delaying the implementation of the budget items.”[/size]
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