TNT:
CandyKisses: Sulaymaniyah promises a “popular explosion”. Salary-free employees rally for protests starting Sunday
Baghdad Today – Sulaymaniyah
Today, Wednesday (August 2, 2023), an informed source revealed that a new date has been set for organizing a demonstration by teaching staff in Sulaymaniyah Governorate to protest the delay in paying employees’ salaries for two consecutive months.
The source, who is one of the organizers of the demonstrations, told “Baghdad Today” that “the teaching cadres are currently preparing to go out with protests for the teaching cadres next Sunday, in protest against the delay in salaries for about two consecutive months.”
It is noteworthy that the employees of the region received their last salary 45 days ago, and the salaries of June and July have not been paid yet, which prompted most institutions in Sulaymaniyah Governorate during the past hours to go on strike, especially workers in the health sector.
CandyKisses: Al-Sudani directs the formation of a ministerial committee to agree on the submission of the draft oil and gas law
Shafaq News / Prime Minister Mohamed Shia Al-Sudani held, on Wednesday, a meeting devoted to discussing the draft federal oil and gas law.
The meeting was held in the presence of a number of leaders of political blocs, ministers of foreign affairs, oil and industry, and the adviser to the Minister of Natural Resources in the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, as well as a number of technical and legal advisers and experts, according to a statement issued by the Sudanese Media Office.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister said that the draft oil and gas law is one of the basic and important laws, and represents a factor of strength and unity for Iraq, and it has been stuck for years, at a time when the country today is in dire need of its legislation and benefit from this natural wealth, in all fields and sectors, as well as the contribution of legislating the law to solving many outstanding problems. His Excellency also explained that there are provinces that have not invested their wealth until today, which is a negative thing on development efforts in all its tracks.
He pointed out that the law is part of the commitment to the ministerial curriculum, which was voted by the House of Representatives, and will take into account constitutional principles, in order to ensure the fair distribution of oil wealth and promote the reality of the economy in its various joints, and contribute to the economic reform set by the government in its priorities.
Al-Sudani directed the formation of a ministerial committee to supervise the technical dialogues between the Federal Ministry of Oil and the Ministry of Natural Resources in the region, as well as inviting the governors of the oil-producing provinces, Basra, Maysan, Kirkuk and Dhi Qar, and the general managers of state oil companies for the ongoing technical dialogues regarding the law, provided that these dialogues will be followed by the completion of the political dialogue to agree to submit the draft law.
The oil and gas law is one of the most important differences between the federal government and the Kurdistan Region and the parties have not reached a settlement on it over the past four parliamentary sessions.
During the current parliamentary session, the political blocs are counting on finding solutions to existing differences and pushing for understandings that satisfy all parties to pass the law.
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CandyKisses: Senior Kurdish delegation in Baghdad to discuss oil and gas law
Baghdad Today – Baghdad
An informed source revealed today, Wednesday (August 2, 2023), the visit of a high-level delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government to the capital, Baghdad, to discuss the oil and gas law.
The source told “Baghdad Today”: “A high-level delegation from the Kurdistan Regional Government will visit today the capital Baghdad to discuss the oil and gas law.”
The source, who preferred not to be named, pointed out that “the delegation will be officials in the Ministry of Natural Resources in the regional government,” noting that “it will meet with officials in the Federal Ministry of Oil, and will hold multiple meetings with other leaders in the central government.”
On July 27, 2023, the Parliamentary Oil and Gas Committee revealed that the oil and gas law is imminent in the House of Representatives, while stressing that it has priority in legislation after the adoption of the budget law.
The importance of oil and gas law
On Wednesday (July 26, 2023), legal expert Ali Al-Tamimi stressed the importance of not violating the decisions of the Federal Court when moving towards approving the Oil and Gas Law, especially since its decisions have become binding on implementation.
Al-Tamimi explained to “Baghdad Today” that “the draft oil and gas law consists of 53 articles, as it necessitated the establishment of the Federal Oil Council, which is headed by the Prime Minister and the membership of the Minister of Oil and Finance, the Governor of the Central Bank, a representative of the provinces and producing regions and experts in oil, taking into account the representation of the components of the Iraqi people, and is responsible for setting petroleum policies, issuing instructions for the implementation of contracts, approving exploration, development and production, approving contracts concluded and other competencies stipulated in the project.”
He added that “the signing of the contracts will be by the Federal Ministry of Oil, provided that they are approved by the Federal Oil Council within 3 months and referred to the Council and not considered invalid, and the draft stipulated the need to review the contracts concluded and to be amended in accordance with this law, which did not specify these contracts, as the first was to be service contracts only and not participation.”
He pointed out that “the law needs to be imposed on the contracting companies to employ Iraqis exclusively, as do the producing countries of the same and this is important, as well as the issue of contracts prior to the legislation of the law must be stipulated, and solve the problem with the contracting companies contrary to the Constitution and the decisions of the Federal Court in accordance with the principle of joint management of the two parties, i.e. the federal government and the region, with the right to dispose exclusively of the federal government in accordance with Article 135 of the Civil Code, which states (whoever disposes of property other than his behavior is dependent on the owner’s license).”
He pointed out that “the law needs to explicitly stipulate the penalties that affect the parties that conclude contracts contrary to this law, as well as determine the regulatory authorities that are entitled to view these contracts, in addition to its need to stipulate the rest of the oil products, not just oil and gas.”
