Kalar notary public staff continue strike over unpaid salaries in Sulaymaniyah​

SULAYMANIYAH – Staff at the notary public office in Kalar, the administrative center of Garmyan in Sulaymaniyah province, have continued their work stoppage for the second consecutive day, protesting over delayed salary payments.

On July 21, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Finance announced it had forwarded the July payroll list to Iraq’s federal Ministry of Finance. This payroll covers civil and military employees, pensioners, social welfare recipients, and notarial staff, yet no funds have been allocated by Baghdad for their distribution.

The strikes began on Sunday. One of the staff members, who requested anonymity, flatly told 964media, “We will not return to work until we receive our salaries.”

Siamand Mohammed, the director of the Kalar Court, declined to comment.

Jamal Kochar, a Kurdish member of the Iraqi parliament’s finance committee, shared insights with 964media regarding the uncertainty of the delays. “We are unsure if it’s due to an increase in the number of KRG employees, an auditing process, or a lack of funds within the Iraqi government,” he said. Kochar added that a meeting is scheduled tomorrow with Iraq’s Minister of Finance, Taif Sami Mohammed, and Minister of Planning Muhammad Ali Tamim at the parliament to address these issues, particularly amid rumors of cash shortages and delays in disbursing KRG employees’ salaries.

In response to these concerns, the federal Ministry of Finance on August 11 formally denied any cash shortage, stating, “Salaries, in all their forms, are a priority for the Ministry of Finance, which allocates approximately 7.5 trillion dinars monthly to fund employee compensation, retirement pensions, grants, social welfare salaries, disability allowances, and student stipends.”

Soran Omer, an Iraqi parliament member, criticized the handling of the payroll list by the KRG, especially concerning security forces’ salaries. “The problem lies with the payroll list that the KRG sent to Baghdad, as it did not address the previous concerns raised by the Iraqi Finance Minister,” Omer explained to 964Media. He expressed frustration over the KRG officials’ reluctance to resolve these issues or address the concerns, adding that the Finance Ministry has no new information to offer the public at this time.

Omer also pointed out that delays in the localization process for KRG employees, mandated by Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court to enable the Iraqi Finance Minister to process their salaries, are contributing to the problem.

Despite ongoing challenges, the approval of Iraq’s 2024 budget on June 3, which allocated over $15 billion for the KRG’s 2024 budget, has raised hopes among Kurdish officials that the persistent issues of salary delays from Baghdad might soon be resolved.