"My Account or Your Account"? New problem behind delayed salaries оf Kurdish employees
Shafaq News/ Iraqi Parliament member, MP Muthanna Amin, confirmed ?n Saturday that the issue ?f salaries for Kurdistan Region employees has been resolved, with no problems except for the adoption ?f either "My Account or Your Account."
Amin said in a press statement , "The issue ?f salaries has been resolved, and there are n? problems since the Federal Court has obligated the Baghdad and Erbil governments t? implement its decisions."
He added, "The current problem between KRG and the federal government ?s about the adoption ?f either 'My Account,' belonging t? the Regional government, ?r 'Your Account,' belonging t? the federal government," indicating that "they have called for the payment ?f salaries as usual and t? resolve the issue within the next two months."
Issues surfaced when the Ministry ?f Finance and Economy ?f the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) voiced concerns over insufficient funding from the federal government, leading t? the withholding ?f salaries for a significant portion ?f the Region's employees ?n February.
KRG has initiated efforts to localize employee salaries through the "My Account" project, supervised by the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) t? ensure fair treatment and equal financial support for employees ?n the Region.
Amin continued, "If the 'My Account' system ?s adopted, the Kurdistan Regional Government will distribute salaries. And ?f 'Your Account,' which ?s approved by the federal government, ?s adopted, means that the federal government will distribute salaries."
He pointed out that "if the Kurdistan Regional Government wants t? pay the salaries ?f its security forces, ?t must disclose their lists and submit them t? the Iraqi government because the Iraqi government sends salaries through an approved list."
The Federal Supreme Court (the highest judicial authority ?n Iraq) decided ?n February to obligate both Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, the federal Prime Minister and the Kurdistan Regional Government President Masrour Barzani t? localize the salaries ?f Kurdish employees and workers ?n the public sector ?n federal banks.
The ruling emphasized that the decision t? localize the salaries ?f the Region's employees ?s final and binding.
On Wednesday, Youssef Al-Kalabi, a Finance committee member, informed Shafaq News that the committee urged the Regional government t? facilitate the localization ?f employees' salaries, ensuring equality with other Iraqi employees.
Al-Kalabi emphasized the clarity ?f the Federal Court's decision and the Ministry ?f Finance's letter, asserting that while February salaries ?n the Kurdistan Region would be disbursed, March salaries hinged ?n localization.
The Ministry ?f Finance and Economy ?n the Kurdistan Regional Government, however, revealed ?n Tuesday that federal procedures deprived regional employees ?f their February salaries. The ministry disclosed that only 59% ?f total salaries were funded by the Federal Ministry ?f Finance, leaving 41% ?f employees without wages, and the funded amount did not reach the Ministry ?f Finance ?n the Kurdistan Region.
