policy
The Federal Supreme Court, on Sunday, postponed its decision on two lawsuits, numbered (193) and (212), concerning the legal mandate of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the scope of its powers during the caretaker period. The court is now scheduled to review these cases on October 26. Lawsuit No. (193) seeks a ruling that the KRG's mandate, established by constitutional oath on July 10, 2019, legally expired on July 10, 2023. Accordingly, the lawsuit calls for the government, since that date, to be considered a daily caretaker administration, with its authority limited to managing essential public services and undertaking non-postponable actions. The lawsuit further requests a ruling prohibiting the KRG from concluding, amending, or canceling strategic contracts, or making decisions related to oil, gas, electricity, and natural resources. It also seeks to prevent any decisions that create long-term financial, legal, or political obligations. Additionally, the lawsuit demands the annulment of all KRG decisions and actions taken after its legal mandate expired and which exceeded daily caretaker duties. Specifically, this includes decisions increasing electricity prices, imposing or raising fees and taxes, executing or modifying oil and electricity contracts, and any strategic decision with financial, legal, economic, or political implications extending to future governments, along with the necessary legal ramifications in accordance with the law. Moreover, the lawsuit aims to compel all Kurdistan Region authorities to adhere to the court's judgment and refrain from exercising any powers beyond caretaker limits, until a new government is formed with legitimacy from a parliament holding a valid constitutional and legal mandate. Lawsuit No. (212), for its part, requests a ruling that the KRG, upon the expiration of its political mandate and the failure to form a new government, constitutes a caretaker government in the constitutional sense. It seeks to define its powers to only essential and customary actions, barring it from strategic decisions or measures creating new legal centers that go beyond the caretaker phase.
