Iraqi Parliamentary Integrity Committee accuses CBI of lack of transparency in dollar auction

Shafaq News/ On Monday, the Iraqi Parliamentary Integrity Committee accused the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) of "lacking transparency" regarding its dollar auction, failing to provide data on the destinations where foreign currency is spent, confirming plans to hold the Bank's governor accountable.

Committee member Hadi al-Salami told Shafaq News Agency, "There is a lack of transparency in the dollar auction, and the daily bulletin detailing where the dollars go and are sold through the auction remains secret. Only the amount of dollars sold is announced, but we do not know where this quantity is going."

He added, "There is a parliamentary movement to hold CBI Governor Ali Al-Alaq accountable, starting with a verbal parliamentary question, and we are awaiting his presence in the parliament for questioning."

"Some blocs and parties oppose the interrogation of the Governor, providing him political protection despite failures in tasks and operations, particularly in the currency auction."

Earlier, several MPs revealed efforts to question the CBI, highlighting that the dollar auction costs Iraq trillions of dinars and threatens the economy. Legal Committee member Raed Al-Maliki stated, "The continuous failure of the CBI and the government to stabilize the dinar and reduce the gap between official and parallel market prices has led to massive financial waste and increased suffering for citizens."

Al-Maliki noted that this situation has resulted in the state incurring trillions of dinars in losses, enriching corrupt individuals at the expense of the public, as most goods' prices depend on the much higher parallel market rate compared to the official rate.

MP Majid Shingali called on the Council of Ministers to take decisive and bold measures regarding Iraq's financial reality. He stressed, "There needs to be a process of building trust between citizens and the banking system, which currently suffers from a significant lack of confidence."

Shingali urged banning the use of dollars in transactions and promoting the use of the Iraqi dinar, along with limiting citizens from holding amounts exceeding ten thousand dollars outside banks to curb financial evasion and enhance official banking practices.

On July 23, it was reported that CBI's total dollar sales over the past six months exceeded $26 billion. Shafaq News Agency correspondents indicated that during the past six months, CBI sold $26.54 billion, averaging $4.42 billion per month.

External remittances accounted for $24.11 billion, representing 89% of the total sales compared to cash sales, which amounted to $2.57 billion.