Kurdish lawmaker: Iraqi PMs spending cuts are ’fake and misleading’

SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region - A Kurdish lawmaker in Baghdad on Monday slammed spending reforms announced by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi early this month, saying the plan was ”fake and misleading.”

Muthanna Amin, an MP in the Iraqi parliament, told Rudaw that the plan, which includes combining some ministries with others to cut costs, did not address the ”main issues.”

“The prime minister has decided to close the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, whose monthly budget is only 150,000 Iraqi dinars (about  $120,” Amin claimed, saying it had little impact on reducing government expenses.

Amin said the ministry comprised of only three rooms in the same building as the council of ministers, without mentioning other costs, such as salaries and security for ministry officials.

One of the senior positions eliminated by Abadi was that of minister of state for women’s affair, held by Baian Nuri, who is a Kurd.

In an effort to reduce government expenses and paperwork, Abadi has reduced the number of ministries from 33 to 22 ministries and cancelled a number of top government positions.

Abadi became prime minister after Iraq’s parliament voted for a new government in December last year at a time of crisis: the Islamic State (ISIS) had captured a third of Iraq and Kurdish-Arab tensions were at a peak.

In that atmosphere, many groups were given government posts to facilitate the formation of a cabinet.