Archives » Tuesday, January 13, 2009
-
Larry Kaplow
|
Jan 13, 2009 11:48 AM
It's bad enough to have phone lines that have not worked for years.
It's worse to get billed for them. In recent weeks, Iraqis have been
getting visits from employees of the government phone company handing
them large bills for phone service–their first bills in years. In many
neighborhoods of Baghdad, landline telephones have not worked since
2003 or earlier (in part explaining the popularity of mobiles). I know
two Iraqis who recently got handed bills for more than $1,000 for three
years of theoretical service along with threats that liens would be
placed on their property if they did not pay.
The government water and electrical companies have followed suit,
sending bills for those two derelict public utilities though home
meters for both services are rare. Some water company collectors have
taken to billing homeowners based on how many bedrooms they have.
Just as frustration was reaching a peak, in stepped Prime Minister Nuri
al-Maliki. He announced this week that the government would cease any
fee collections for telephones, water and electricity until the
homeowners' consumption could be calculated "in what achieves justice."
It's notable that Maliki and other Iraqi politicians are in a contest
of giveaways leading up to provincial elections Jan. 31 and this could
boost his popularity. Of course, he leads the government that was
imposing some of the fees in the first place. And, as American advisers
have often urged, making people pay for their services makes sense for
weaning a country off its welfare-state habits. But considering the
state of these utilities, removing the fees makes more sense right now.
--With Saad al-Izzi in Baghdad
More
