Baghdad asserts budgetary boundaries amidst Kurdish salary dispute
Shafaq News / Masoud Haider, Deputy Minister of Finance, emphatically stated on Tuesday that the Iraqi federal government cannot directly pay the salaries of employees in the Kurdistan region. This declaration follows the demands of four Kurdish political blocs in the parliament urging the federal government to transfer the salaries of Kurdistan employees directly.
Speaking to Shafaq News Agency, Haider clarified, "According to the Iraqi Constitution, the federal government cannot directly pay salaries or any other expenses to the region." He emphasized that all transactions between the region and Baghdad should occur through the official institutions of both governments.
According to the 2023 budget law, the federal government is obligated to send 775 billion dinars monthly to the Kurdistan region through the Kurdistan Ministry of Finance. He stressed that any deviation from this framework would manipulate the sentiments of the people and salary recipients in the Kurdistan region, as it contradicts Articles 117 and 121 of the Constitution.
The Kurdistan Teachers and Public Employees' Rights Defense Authority announced on September 30, 2023, that it gathered more than 60,000 signatures to transfer the region's employees' salaries to the federal government. This decision, influenced by Qais al-Khazali, Secretary-General of Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, and other officials, was a significant development in the ongoing debate.
A well-informed political source revealed on September 17, 2023, that the federal cabinet had agreed to fund the Kurdistan Regional Government to settle employees' salaries for the last three months. Additionally, Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani confirmed reaching an agreement with federal Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to secure citizens' salaries.
Article 13 of the budget mandates the Kurdistan region to deliver at least 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily to the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) for export through the Ceyhan port or for domestic use if not exported.
