Text of the interrogation of the head of the network in Parliament

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[size=52]Text of the interrogation of the head of the network in Parliament[/size]

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02-19-2024
The House of Representatives questioned the head of the media network, Nabil Jassim, during today’s session, while voting not to be convinced by his answers.[/size]
[size=45]The Media Department of the House of Representatives stated, in a statement, what was stated in the interrogation, indicating that “the member of the House of Representatives, Raed Al-Maliki, asked many questions, while the head of the Iraqi Media Network, Nabil Jassim, answered them.”[/size]
[size=45]Below is the text of the interrogation:[/size]
[size=45]* Representative Al-Maliki inquired during the session about violating the Iraqi Media Network law regarding conflicts of interest through the network’s president’s wife owning a media production and distribution company.[/size]
[size=45]Nabil Jassim explained that the network law includes a conflict of interest in the event of carrying out any material business with the network, denying the existence of any commercial business neither with the media network nor with any other government department.[/size]
[size=45]He confirmed the existence of two companies called Ishtar Advertising Gateway and Iraqi Adwaa for General Trade, which were established in 2005 and 2009, according to the Registrar of Companies and before he assumed the position, indicating that they were ineffective companies.[/size]
[size=45]He confirmed submitting his financial disclosure upon appointment, and there was no objection from the Integrity Commission.[/size]
[size=45]He confirmed that the competent sectoral authority did not object.[/size]
[size=45]The integrity judge issued a ruling to close the case related to ownership of the company.[/size]
[size=45]* Representative Al-Maliki inquired about the work of Nabil Jassim, editor-in-chief of Ishtar magazine, which is supervised by the son of the regime’s president, as it is one of the regime’s media institutions and promotes its policy, and this conflicts with the tasks of the Iraqi Media Network at the present time.[/size]
[size=45]The head of the Iraqi Media Network confirmed that his work in Ishtar magazine was not a secret, but was recorded in my CV before I assumed the position. The magazine was of an artistic and cultural nature and did not address political topics, and working in it did not require belonging to the dissolved Baath Party.[/size]
[size=45]- Confirming that this charge was fabricated at the time by the previous Board of Trustees for the purpose of terminating my assignment and the Iraqi judiciary closed the complaint filed against me.[/size]
[size=45]He also pointed out that the responsibility for publishing pictures of the tyrant did not fall on the editor-in-chief, but rather the pictures were printed on all educational curricula.[/size]
[size=45]He noted that he was not included in the procedures of accountability and justice during his appointment, according to the Iraqi Media Network Law, after reviewing the CV, and the Integrity Commission and the Parliamentary Culture Committee were informed in advance about it, and it was fabricated by the Board of Trustees and its validity was not proven with legal evidence.[/size]
[size=45]*It was inquired about the head of the network causing a major security breach in maintaining the confidentiality of documents related to the 2021 parliamentary elections in the presence of people outside the network’s ownership and supervising the printing of sensitive materials in the Iraqi Media Network printing press after contracting with the Election Commission to print the names of voters for the public and private registry.[/size]
[size=45]- Nabil Jassim mentioned that the Election Commission was printing the voter register outside Iraq, and entrusting the media network with this work is considered a source of pride for us and an achievement for a national institution by printing lists of names such as the voter register, information booklet, complaints form, and interviewee booklet.[/size]
[size=45]He also pointed out that the Election Commission contract states that the printed materials are not sensitive, and the printing process was subject to the monitoring of the Iraqi security services, led by the Baghdad Operations Command, and no security breach was recorded.[/size]
[size=45]The head of the network pointed out that they had received a letter of thanks and appreciation from the Election Commission for the efforts made by the Iraqi Media Network in record time in printing the required materials.[/size]
[size=45]He noted the use of dozens of skilled workers and other printing presses, especially since state departments’ printing presses are unable to print these quantities with the required efficiency.[/size]
[size=45]The head of the network confirmed that the Parliamentary Culture and Integrity Committees had been informed of these procedures.[/size]
[size=45]He demanded the formation of an official higher committee to investigate the accusation against him.[/size]
[size=45]* Representative Raed Al-Maliki asked an inquiry about the Iraqi Media Network printing the Illustrated Iraq Civilizational Encyclopedia without taking into account the contractual controls and your claim that it was printed on the Media Network while the printing process took place in Tehran.[/size]
[size=45]In his response, Jassim pointed out that this achievement is the first work of its kind in the history of the Iraqi state, and it was worked on for two years to show Iraq’s cultural image for archival purposes.[/size]
[size=45]He confirmed that no contract was concluded between the Iraqi Media Network and any external party regarding the contract, but rather it was printed in the Iraqi Media Network’s printing presses and work supplies were purchased from the local market.[/size]
[size=45]* Representative Al-Maliki asked a question regarding the network president’s violation of its law by not implementing the decisions of the Board of Trustees to ratify its recommendations, related to the issue of the director of the network president’s office harassing a female journalist.[/size]
[size=45]- Nabil Jassim explained that the Board of Trustees of the Iraqi Media Network does not issue investigative decisions and the network is not obligated to respond to them, at a time when the accuracy of what was alleged against the accusation by the Board of Trustees has not been proven, and it was not an investigation committee, but rather a hearing committee, noting that a decision was issued. A court acquits the director of the office of the head of the Iraqi Media Network of the charge.[/size]
[size=45]* Representative Raed Al-Maliki was surprised in his question about the network president’s exploitation of his position by not publishing news of his interrogation on the network’s channels since he was informed of it until today, in addition to his reluctance to publish the agenda of the House of Representatives session related to the interrogation. This is considered a deliberate matter by the network president and contributes to shading public opinion.[/size]
[size=45]The head of the network stated that the question was not accurate, especially since the Iraqi Media Network has a cooperation document with the media department of the House of Representatives, under which it was obligated to publish all news and activities of the House after its transmission was approved by those authorized in the media department to avoid publishing unofficial news.[/size]
[size=45]Regarding the interrogation, on January 29, the media department sent the session’s agenda and it was published in the Iraqi News Agency, referring to the interrogation paragraph.[/size]
[size=45]- In addition to broadcasting the council session on Al-Iraqiya channel, as received from the media department, with all its details, including postponing the subject of the interrogation.[/size]
[size=45]- Adding that Al-Iraqiya Channel broadcasts the Council’s activities for a full hour.[/size]
[size=45]* Representative Raed Al-Maliki wondered about the failure of the head of the network to respond to a letter from the office of the Acting Speaker of the House of Representatives four months ago regarding a request for important information about the interrogation, and this is considered a violation of the law of the House of Representatives.[/size]
[size=45]Jassim confirmed the receipt of a letter from the office of the First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives on September 26, 2023, attached to the interrogation questions, indicating that the letter did not include confirmation of answering it, stressing the Iraqi Media Network’s commitment to answering all letters issued by the House of Representatives.[/size]
[size=45]Representative Raed Al-Maliki expressed his “dissatisfaction with the answers of Nabil Jassim, head of the Iraqi Media Network, and was satisfied with this number of questions.”[/size]
[size=45]At the conclusion of the session, in the presence of 185 representatives, the Council voted not to be satisfied with the answers of the head of the Iraqi Media Network, Nabil Jassim. Ended / 25 R.
Previously published on February 13.[/size]
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