Iraqi writer criticizes widespread fees for basic public services

Iraqi writer Haydar Hussein Suwaytri has written a critique of the country's bureaucracy and public services, arguing that citizens are charged for nearly every interaction with the state. In the article, Suwaytri lists fees imposed across a wide range of essential services, including education, healthcare, municipal work, water and electricity. He also points to charges on real estate purchases, building permits, property deeds, inheritance transfers and vehicle registration, as well as on driver's licenses, marriage certificates, passport issuance and job applications. Suwaytri further argues that families spend additional money on private tutoring to compensate for low teaching standards in public schools, that young men were sent to the front lines during wartime, that pilgrims pay out of pocket for the Hajj and that families must even buy a plot of state land to bury their dead. He writes that despite these payments, public services remain inadequate and questions where the money goes. The piece concludes by criticizing what Suwaytri describes as public patience and calling for accountability from the government.