Top Kurdistan officials to discuss ‘Reform Bill’ as parliament grants it ‘emergency status’

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region’s top officials will hold a meeting on Tuesday to facilitate the passage of a reform bill a day after parliament concluded a first reading of the draft law, a lawmaker said on Monday.

“There will be a meeting between the leadership of parliament, the president of the region, and the prime minister tomorrow,” Shwan Zrari, a lawmaker in the Kurdistan Region Parliament, told Kurdistan 24.

Zrari explained that President Nechirvan Barzani, Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, and Parliament Speaker Rewaz Fayaq would discuss the articles of the “Reform Bill” and consider ways to expedite its passage through the legislature.

During a publicly broadcast segment of a parliamentary session on Monday, the legislature completed the first reading of the bill, and 85 lawmakers voted to grant it an “emergency status” to speed up the process of passing it.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) considers the bill, which it drafted, a landmark step toward reforming the KRG public sector. The bill “includes a series of measures designed to provide more certainty and accountability on salaries, pensions, and allowances for public servants,” the KRG has said.

Senior lawmaker Omed Khashnaw told Kurdistan 24 on Sunday that the bill could be voted on and become law before the new year. “All sides are in agreement on the bill, which is important for reform and improving the situation of the public,” he said.

Read More: Kurdistan ‘Reform Bill’ could pass parliament before 2020: lawmaker

Prime Minister Barzani has said that reform is a crucial and ongoing process and that the next phase would be even more comprehensive.

On Saturday, Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani expressed his support for the KRG initiative and described the reform bill as an “important step” that would mark a step forward in the Kurdistan Region's progress.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany