Panel: A legal and financial perspective on Federal Supreme Court ruling regarding salaries of Kurdistan employees

The University of Human Development (UHD) held a panel on 4 February 2024 on the recent decision of the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court regarding the salaries of all government employees in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The ruling was issued on 21 February 2024. It came in response to a complaint about the problem of Kurdistan public sector employees.

The decision has brought controversies among politicians and the public. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is worried about the implications of the decision for the autonomy of the region – the fear is that the decision may shrink the power of the KRG and strengthen centralisation in Iraq. However, the decision is also seen as a hope for government employees who have not received their due monthly salaries regularly for the past 8-9 years.

The panellists were Professor Dr Fazil Nabi, former deputy minister of Iraq’s Ministry of Finance, and Mr Bakr Hama-Siddeeq, a Kurdish lawyer, former Iraqi MP, and the petitioner (complainant) in the lawsuit about the salary problem of Kurdistan employees. The moderator was Professor Dr Zana Hama-Kareem, a lecturer at the Law Department at the UHD.

Mr Hama-Siddeeq described his action, filing the complaint with the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court, as normal and for the benefit of all the employees. He said that he and his team were lucky to have their lawsuit accepted and the result was great for everyone. He warned that the Supreme Court’s decisions are final and cannot be appealed, and both the Iraqi government and Kurdistan Regional Government must respect and execute the decision as it is. Otherwise, there will be consequences for anyone who disobeys or obstructs the implementation of the decision.

Professor Nabi for his part mentioned that things have been handled badly by the Kurdish representatives in Baghdad and Kurdistan political leadership could not deal well with the situation from the very start. He said that the Kurdistan government must pay its employees their due money on time, and no excuses must be accepted. This is the duty of the government. He also said that the Supreme Court’s decision can have negative consequences for the power and position of the Kurdistan Regional Government but it is a reality, it cannot be rejected and that the Kurdish leadership must act wisely.

The panel was held at Professor Dr Ali Qaradaghi Hall at UHD. It lasted for more than an hour. Some questions were taken at the end by the panellists.

At the end, the UHD President Professor Dr Mariwan Ahmed Rasheed presented the UHD logo plaque to Professor Nabi and Mr Hama-Siddeeq.