Emerge From Beneath Your Desks
Opinion | Diyar Harki – Founder of KurdFile
By the calendar of empty pockets, today is not the 30th — it is the 60th day of the month. Two full months without salaries. Two months in which teachers, employees, and civil servants have received nothing while those in power continue to dine well and sleep comfortably.
In no political culture is it acceptable for leaders to remain insulated while the public cannot afford bread — yet the leadership still presents itself as the aggrieved party. Only weeks ago, speeches were delivered about the “dignity of the Kurdish individual.” Today, that same dignity stands outside closed gates while officials retreat behind walls and protocol.
Open the gates.
The public is bearing the cost of failed strategies and economic mismanagement. It is not enough to issue statements from behind guarded entrances. If leadership believes in strength, it must demonstrate it in the open, not from beneath desks or inside fortified compounds.
In Baghdad, Kurdish representatives appear weaker and more fragmented than ever. Meanwhile, wealth is visibly concentrated — investments, villas, international properties, business networks stretching from Erbil to Geneva, California, Beirut, and Dubai. If accumulated resources cannot serve the people in moments of crisis, then what public purpose do they claim to fulfill?
Critics argue that Kurdish leadership has grown increasingly dependent on political calculations in Baghdad rather than standing shoulder-to-shoulder with its own citizens. If the commitment to dignity were genuine, luxuries would be secondary, and solidarity would be visible.
As for the rival center of power in Sulaymaniyah, speeches and media appearances will not resolve structural failure. Public confidence requires more than microphones — it requires presence, accountability, and tangible action.
Anger is rising. Patience is thinning. Economic hardship has a limit.
The question is no longer rhetorical: will leadership emerge and confront the crisis directly — or remain seated while the people stand alone?
Author Profile
- Diyar Harki is an independent investigative journalist and human rights advocate. As a member of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), he focuses on exposing corruption and human rights abuses in Kurdistan and Iraq. He voluntarily contributes to Kurdfile Media.
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