American Contractor

AMERICAN CONTRACTOR NEWLETTER

30 JANUARY 2010

IRAQ IMPORTANT DATES
4 March 2010 Early voting of Parliamentary Elections
7 March 2010 Iraq Parliamentary Elections
1 April 2010 U.N. Report by the Seceretary-General on Iraq
15 April 2010 Iraq Investment Conference - Istanbul, Turkey
June 2010 U.N. Tarsov Mandate Extended
Oct 2010 National Census (rescheduled from Oct 2009)

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Political Developments
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As predicted some of the names who had been previously barred from
participating in the upcoming elections have been re-instated by
the government Accountability and Justice Committee (AJC).
54 members have submitted the documents exonerating them of any
ties to the previous regime Saddam Ba’ath party loyalists. So, 54
names are allowed to participate in the upcoming Parliamentary
elections.

The 2010 federal budget law was not on the schedule on 25 Jan, due to
lack of quorum from the Iraqi Parliament members. It appears some
Parliament do not want to show up for the voting session on pending
legislative bills to include the 2010 federal budget law. As I have
said previously most if not all Parliament members will not be voted
back into office and have a lack of participation in legislative
matters. On 26 Jan, Tuesday, the Parliament had scheduled a vote on
the 2010 federal budget, and have passed the 2010 federal budget law.

The Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) have opened offices
in neighboring countries where Iraqi’s living abroad are able to
participate in the Iraq elections. The countries are Turkey,
Jordan, Syria, Iran, Lebanon and more countries will be in line
as IHEC personnel are mobilized and staffed properly at each out
of country office.

The Iraqi Parliament did manage to pass five laws in the last
week when they all showed up for work.

1. Increasing the salaries of judges and public prosecutors
from 2008 levels
2. Implementing the Iraqi-Syrian Agreement regarding customs
cooperation
3. Law for preventing a monoply
4. Protecting Iraqi products
5. Law for custom fee’s

PM Nuri al-Maliki, has made an announcement that 70,000 officers
and members of the Ministry and Defense will be pensioned
immediately after the March elections. I am not sure what is the
cost on the retirement package.

The IHEC has stated that 42 out of 306 have been barred from
participating in the March elections in the al-Anbar province.

The IHEC also announced recently that 6,539 candidates are for
political positions and that 2,000 are woman.

The Kurds are suspected to only win 60-65 Parliamentary seats
in the next election. President Talabani, will have some
difficulty in obtaining the President position after the elections
as Sunni’s and the Change movement do not support him.

President Talabani, has stated that if the political blocs would
like him to run for the Iraq President position that he will run,
if not he will leave and head back to Sulymaniya and write his
memoirs. My prediction is that he will be heading back to
Sulymaniya.

The Kudistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry has also approved
a 2010 federal budget law, which they have and sent the details
of the budget to KRG Parliament to be voted on.

The Electoral Conduct Law which is trying to be passed the same
time as the 2010 federal budget law and some political parties
are using this to attempt to derail the budget law. Some
political groups had wanted the Electoral Law passed before the
2010 budget law. The Electoral Conduct law is the law that
mandates all political parties to disclose their financial
contributions and donations to their campaigns. I have said
in recent newsletters that Iraq’s neighbors are involved in
sending large amounts of donations to political parties and
candidates attempting to influence Iraq’s government affairs.

There is a lawsuit that was filed by MP Shatha al-Musawi, against
the recent oil contract award with BP and ExxonMobile. The case
will be heard in Baghdad on 1 Feb. It will be a case to watch
as it will effect all oil contracts signed to date by both the
central government. If MP Musawi is successful oil contracts
have the potential of becoming invalid.

***State owned Drug Stores Closing***

You probably did not know that the Iraqi government owns and
controls drug pharmacies inside Iraq. The Health Inspector has
just announced and also has a law to back the inspector in closing
down all State run pharmacies. It is primarily due to the Iraqi’s
have a less favorable opinion of the State manufactured drugs then
the drugs you get from the private sector. The iraqi’s think they
are of poor quality and would rather not use them.

Iraqi Doctors are informing and telling people to go to the
private sector and get their prescriptions filled that way.

***Ministry of Finance Stopped payment on 13.5 million usd***

The Baghdad newspaper al-Bayyna al Jadidah, recently reported
an incident that occurred with the Ministry of Finance Baqr Jabber
Al Zubaidi, when he was going through his mail and noticed a check
for 13.5 million usd submitted by another ministry. The Finance
Minister became suspicious and ordered an investigation and later
found out that the contractor company payment should only have
been 4.4 million usd. The Finance Minister called the other
Minister and asked him if he should launch a full investigation
or forget about the whole thing. The other Minister has not
replied and has not called the Finance minister again. ?

***Boycott Elections - Allawi***

Iyad Allawi, head of the Iraqi List, is now coming out and saying
that he will boycott the upcoming elections in March. Allawi
said that if the candidates that were banned by the Accountability
and Justice Committee are not reinstated then he was planning on
boycotting the elections. Allawi surely knows that the appeals
process is in the hands of the Higher Federal Court.

I have mentioned no RV in the beginning of January and also stand
by no RV in February 2010. The meeting with PM Maliki and the Shia
Cleric will not result in an RV. This is a scheduled meeting
that has been planned since last year.

* * *
FYI

I’m noticing that there’s been a lot of discussion recently about
ebooks and the information they may be providing when it comes
to Iraq and the Iraqi Dinar.

Many questions have been sent my way asking me my opinion on them
and without having read them it’s pretty difficult for me to
critique them or give my opinions.

With that said, I’d like to take this opportunity to offer any
of my readers or newsletter subscribers the chance to forward
me a copy of any ebook that they have in their possession so
that I may read them and give my knowledgeable and honest opinion.

* * *
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