Koya's Mayor Shortchanged by KRG's Incomplete Government

UNCLAS BAGHDAD 001017 SIPDIS SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER IZ SUBJECT: Koya's Mayor Shortchanged by KRG's Incomplete Government Unification ¶1. (SBU) Koya's Mayor, Kurda Omar, told RRTOffs March 31 that her district had received only $2 million in Provincial Reconstruction Funds from Erbil since 2006. Omar explained that Koya district had shifted administratively from Sulaymaniah province to Erbil province in 2006 as a result of the Unification Agreement, which united the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) governments, except for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministries of Finance, Interior, and Peshmerga Affairs. Omar said that the Sulaymaniah Ministry of Finance continued to pay salaries for Koya public servants, but that no project funding had been provided. She said she raised her concerns with the Erbil Governor in December 2007, and in January and March 2008, yet the Governor repeatedly told her that he had not been given "official notification" from the KRG's Council of Ministers to provide funding for Koya. Omar sent a letter December 9 to the KRG Council of Ministers; she has not received a reply to date. ¶2. (U) Koya's population is approximately 120,000 (Erbil province total population is approx. 1.3 million) with 134 villages and 30,000 students. Koya district originally was part of Kirkuk Province before Saddam-era boundary changes and then shifted to Erbil Province. During the PUK and KDP fighting in the 1990s, it came under control of Sulaymaniah. Koya district remains a PUK stronghold and is the birthplace of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. 400 Muslim and 80 Christian families have taken refuge in Koya since 2005; only the Christian families received apartments, provided directly by the President of Iraq. In addition, there are 1,200 Iranian Kurds who live in Koya district. Primary economic activities are farming and agricultural activities. Omar expressed concern over the limited rainfall received this year, and the potential impact on the region's farmers. ¶3. (SBU) Comment: Koya district appears to be suffering from the continued inability of the PUK and KDP to complete the merging of the Finance, Interior, and Peshmerga Affairs ministries. The situation is exacerbated by inaction on the part of KRG's Council of Ministers to officially inform the Erbil Governor that he's now responsible for Koya, which may simply be a handy excuse by the Governor to avoid paying for Koya. That said, Omar noted that her relationship with the Governor is good, and she does not believe that the lack of funds for Koya is due to party machinations (Erbil is mostly KDP, while Koya is PUK territory). The situation in Koya is an example of the continued negative impact of the PUK and KDP's failure to resolve their differences. In an attempt to encourage reform, the Kurdistan National Assembly recently said it will refuse to approve the 2008 budget until the three ministries are merged. Increased pressure on the two parties to step up to their responsibilities in the KRG could lead to increased development and economic growth in the region. End Comment. CROCKER