Qahwachi: Kurdistan Region United on Demanding Constitutional Budget Share
Qahwachi dismissed claims that Kurdish leaders discussed a loan from Baghdad, stating, “That topic was never raised. Anyone suggesting otherwise speaks only for their own party.”
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Mona Qahwachi, Deputy Leader of the Turkmen Reform Party, firmly denied that any discussion took place regarding a potential loan request from the Iraqi government to pay public sector salaries in the Kurdistan Region during a high-level political meeting held Saturday in Pirmam.
Speaking to Kurdistan24 on Saturday, Qahwachi described the gathering as a significant event that went beyond party lines. “Today’s meeting wasn’t in the interest of one party alone—it served the broader interests of all the people of Kurdistan,” she said.
She emphasized that the political forces participating in the meeting demonstrated a shared concern for the welfare of the Kurdistani people. “The attendees proved they genuinely care about the livelihood and rights of citizens in the Kurdistan Region,” she noted.
Qahwachi firmly rejected media speculation and unofficial statements suggesting that the Kurdish leadership discussed taking a loan from Baghdad to cover public employee salaries. “No such topic was brought up during the meeting,” she clarified. “If anyone mentions it afterward, they speak on behalf of their own party, not the collective.”
She further added that for the first time in a long while, all political parties in the Kurdistan Region stood united on one principle: that the Iraqi federal government’s recent decisions undermine the constitutional rights and financial entitlements of the Kurdish people. “We were all in agreement that the Kurdistan Region deserves to receive its rightful share of the national budget, based on the constitution, existing political agreements, and the rulings of the Federal Supreme Court,” Qahwachi affirmed.
Tensions between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the federal government in Baghdad have sharply intensified as Baghdad continues to delay budget transfers and manipulate financial agreements to the detriment of the Kurdistan Region. Kurdish leaders have consistently accused the federal government of weaponizing public finances to undermine the KRG’s constitutional rights and destabilize the region, particularly by deliberately withholding the monthly salaries of Kurdish civil servants.
Despite repeated attempts by the KRG to engage in dialogue and fulfill its responsibilities, Baghdad has imposed ever-shifting conditions—such as demands for excessive oil transparency and unjust control over Peshmerga salaries—that go far beyond what Iraq’s constitution stipulates. Kurdish officials argue that these politically motivated demands are a direct assault on the region’s autonomy and an attempt to erode the federal framework that guarantees Kurdistan's self-governance.
Saturday's meeting in Pirmam, attended by all major Kurdish political factions, was a powerful display of national unity in the face of Baghdad’s discriminatory and coercive fiscal policy. Contrary to misleading media narratives, the meeting did not include any discussion of borrowing from Baghdad, and all parties reaffirmed their commitment to defending Kurdistan’s financial rights.
This growing political cohesion across Kurdistan’s leadership is a direct response to Baghdad’s sustained campaign of economic injustice. It signals a stronger, united front in upcoming negotiations and offers hope to a public that has long endured hardship due to Baghdad’s deliberate obstructionism.
