Kurdistan’s Oil and the Opposition Party

It is said that Gorran [the major opposition movement of Iraqi Kurdistan] has to apologize to the government regarding the matter of oil exportation. And the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) [one of the two ruling parties] has sued Rozhnama, a Gorran newspaper, for one billion US dollar over an article the paper had published about alleged smuggling of oil by the two ruling parties to Iran. The other ruling party’s chairman threatens to take us (Gorran) to the court as well.

As for Rozhnama, they can themselves have a reply. If the investigations showed that there had been flaws or exaggerations in the news published by the Gorran news channels, then it will be a normal thing for Gorran to apologize. Such an apology is a part of the professionalism and ethics of the media. Here, as a parliamentarian of the Gorran faction, I would like to talk about the stance of parliament and the Gorran law makers have had on the issue.  

The funny thing is that political party and government officials have asked the opposition to apologize. In fact the most unlawful thing in the oil issue is this demand. I think those who have asked the opposition to apologize have neither understood the role and duty the parliament has nor those of opposition. They are not viewing the parliament the way they should.

Let us take a look what the opposition has said over this issue, and then decide how unreasonable this demand was.

The opposition had asked for clarification from the government. This is an ordinary right of the opposition since it represents a portion of the population of this region. The opposition had also asked the parliament speaker to hold an immediate session to discuss the issue and to hear the officials involved in the oil business. For parliament it is a very easy task to hold a session and call on the government officials to attend explaining issues. This would have brought transparency to the issue. Not having done so is a democratic deficit. The parliament has to respect its constituencies.

Hundreds of oil tankers queue at the border on a daily basis before the eyes of a people whose districts and towns are in a very bad shape. Lack of services, hundreds of unemployed youth, bad electricity, bumpy roads, tens of other such problems is prevalent in these towns. Yet the citizens are not allowed to say where does this oil go? How much is its incomes? Who takes the revenues? Is it not the parliamentarians’ duty to question the government over such an issue? Is it not the parliament’s duty to investigate all the contradictory statements made by the government officials?

Does a democratic system operate by false promise and closed-door discussions or operate by discussing the problems in the legal institutions of the state? The government says they do not have anything to hide about the oil issue. They claim to be transparent. If so then why does the government not explain the truth to the people and parliament?

The opposition parliamentarians have not accused anyone. They have not called anyone a thief or a smuggler. But they have simply asked for an investigation of the subject. They have asked for clarification and details about the issue. This oil is pumped under the feet of the citizens of this country. This means the oil is every single citizen’s oil. It is not to be manipulated by one person, one company or one political party. Therefore, the parliament has to investigate the subject and inform the public about the issue.

When media provokes a subject, it is parliament’s duty to follow that particular subject and present the reality to the people.

Therefore, it is not the opposition who should apologize, but the minister, and those who are in charge of this issue and the government should apologize to the opposition. They should not trespass the limits of the Kurdistan’s legislative power. They should facilitate for the parliamentarians to see all the files related to this matter.

Certainly, the opposition is not going to apologize. But it asks for information about each drop of the oil, and each dinar made out of the oil. This is the right of the opposition and all the parliamentarians as well as all the people of the Kurdistan region.

Adnan Osman is head of the Gorran Fraction in the Kurdistan Parliament in Iraq.