Last March, the National Unity Government announced the submission of its budget proposal estimated at 97 billion dinars, which included 33 billion dinars for salaries, and running expenses about 11 billion dinars, development and projects more than 22 billion dinars, and more than 23 billion dinars were allocated for subsidized items, and 5 billion dinars for emergency. .
According to the members of the Supreme Council of State and Representatives, the budget is huge and does not correspond to the government’s short term, which makes ambiguity surrounding the budget and the way it is spent and what it may reflect in terms of a worsening economic crisis.
Reflections
According to a large number of members of the Supreme Council of the State of Representatives, they believe that this proposed budget inflated expenditures and expanded spending, despite its short life before the elections, with the creation of new ministerial offices and expensive administrative centers without justification.
Also, according to their words, this matter may lead to an increase in inflation rates, weaken purchasing power, exacerbate the cash crisis, and open the gates of corruption and waste of public money, in addition to the fact that the next government after the elections will be unable to finance this proposed budget and pay its outstanding obligations.
A number of them accused the government of haste and lack of scrutiny, as it allocated more than 22 billion dinars to the development projects without details, in addition to a huge sum of more than 12 billion for its own running expenses, including office, car, external duties and other expenses, with a license for it to dispose of any increase in Oil revenues.
A claim to be reduced
Last Saturday, the Finance Committee in the House of Representatives recommended that the draft budget be returned to the government to be reviewed and achieve the main goal of its allocation, and called for reducing the budget from 97 billion dinars to 78 billion dinars.
They attributed this to the fact that the draft budget was prepared in a hurry and did not take into account the government’s real goals, economic conditions and the capacity of its economy, as spending about 100 billion in less than a year would have a bad impact on the national economy, and it was based on a void law of the outgoing National Congress.
A number of deputies also recommended that it focus on priority files such as confronting the Corona pandemic, resolving the electricity crisis, protecting the purchasing power of basic foodstuffs and medicines, and finally providing the necessary conditions for elections.
Holding the session after a delay
Since the budget was announced in late March, it has not yet been approved by the House of Representatives and the Supreme State Council. Therefore, the Presidency of the Council announced, on Sunday, to hold an official session, next Monday; To discuss the draft general budget law proposed by the government, it also requested the Council’s Planning and Finance Committee to submit its report on the draft law to the Council of Representatives before the session convenes.
