Shafaq News- Baghdad<\/p>\n
A group of Iraqi lawmakers submitted a formal request to
\nParliament Speaker Haibet Al-Halbousi to place a proposal to freeze provincial
\ncouncils and their budgets for the current term on the agenda of the next
\nparliamentary session. <\/p>\n
Reviving one of Iraq’s most contentious debates over
\ndecentralization, signatories based their request, submitted Sunday, on Article
\n20\/First of the Governorates Not Organized in a Region Law No. 21 of 2008 (as
\namended), along with provisions addressing council accountability in cases of
\nserious breaches of duty or violations of the constitution and law, as well as
\ncouncils’ subjection to parliamentary oversight, according to a document seen
\nby Shafaq News.<\/p>\n
The petition seeks to freeze<\/a> provincial councils rather than Al-Fatlawi acknowledged that with roughly one year and two \u201cBudgets allocated for provincial development and He doesn\u2019t expect passage to be easy, however, predicting Read more: Iraq\u2019s Provincial Councils: Dysfunctional return deepens public disillusionment<\/a><\/p>\n This parliamentary push comes as Iraq’s government spending MP Mohammed Khalil goes further than the freeze proposal, \u201cOriginally meant to deliver services to citizens, the Citing the earlier experience of dissolving district
\ndissolve them, since their existence is protected by the constitution and
\ncannot be ended through this mechanism alone, MP Hamed al-Fatlawi told Shafaq
\nNews, pointing to the previous suspension of councils after they exceeded their
\nelectoral term.<\/p>\n
\nmonths remaining in the current term, \u201cfreezing the councils now would raise
\ngreater legal and political complications,\u201d particularly since the sitting
\ncouncils resulted from direct elections. Amending the provincial councils\u2019 law
\nto grant governors broader powers, freeing them from council-imposed
\nconstraints, represents the better long-term solution, he said, though \u201cthe
\ncurrent financial crisis and weak council performance are strengthening calls
\nfor a freeze.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nministerial projects have not translated adequately into results on the
\nground,\u201d al-Fatlawi said, accusing councils of \u201cenabling corruption and the
\ndistribution and sale of quotas and positions, which affects public funds and
\nproject implementation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nthat Iraq’s ongoing financial crisis could eventually force reconsideration of
\nwhether upcoming provincial council elections can even be held if sufficient
\nliquidity is unavailable.<\/p>\n
\nfaces severe strain: recent figures show monthly salary obligations at roughly
\n7.8 trillion dinars (approximately $5.95 billion), while the government needs
\naround 10.8 trillion dinars (approximately $8.24 billion) monthly to cover
\ntotal salaries and public expenditures.<\/p>\n
\narguing that abolishing provincial councils is both a popular demand and a
\ntimely necessity. Councils have become a source of “legislative
\ndisruption” within the administrative structure, he told Shafaq News,
\nconsuming budget funds without achieving their intended purpose.<\/p>\n
\ncouncils became an additional layer obstructing the executive branch and an
\narena for political interests,\u201d Khalil argued. He stressed that oversight tools
\nare no longer confined to local councils given the existence of the Board of
\nSupreme Audit, the Federal Commission of Integrity, and other regulatory
\nbodies, making him favor ending the councils outright rather than a temporary
\nfreeze. <\/p>\n
\ncouncils, Khalil said that eliminating provincial councils could similarly
\nremove \u201can excess layer from the administrative structure.\u201d<\/p>\n