Iraqi lawmaker Al-Acreci urges parliament to vote on internal oversight bill

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The head of the Reconstruction and Development Bloc in Iraq's parliament, Baha al-Al-Acreci, called on lawmakers to place a draft law establishing an Internal Oversight Authority on the agenda of upcoming sessions and put it to a vote. Speaking at a press conference at the parliament in Baghdad, he described the bill as a structural step that would strengthen the anti-corruption system and close auditing gaps between government institutions. Al-Acreci said the draft had been raised during the previous government without being enacted, and was approved by the Council of Ministers under Prime Minister Ali al-Zaydi's cabinet. He said the Reconstruction and Development Bloc has fully endorsed the bill and urged all political blocs to back it, adding that the proposed body would report directly to the Council of Ministers and fill the oversight gap between the government, government inspectors and the Financial Audit Bureau. The lawmaker warned that political forces that had objected to the bill in the cabinet could attempt to obstruct it in parliament, and called for the national interest to be prioritized. The report also noted that the government has detained a number of officials and lawmakers as part of an anti-corruption campaign and recovered large sums for the state treasury.