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Kurdistan Prime Minister Barzani discussed the sensitive political juncture in Iraq and outlined how life would have stopped in Kurdistan without electricity if it was not for Region's oil and gas policy
Attended by Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, Salahaddin University's 31st graduation ceremony was held at the Franso Hariri Stadium in Erbil.

Minister of the Higher Education and Scientific Research, a number of KRG ministers, graduating students and their families attended the ceremony on Thursday, June 28th.

Speaking during the ceremony, PM Barzani congratulated the graduating students and praised the important role of the teachers in the making of this day.

"Neither Kurdistan Regional Government nor any other government in the world can employ all the graduates in the public sector," Barzani told the students, while encouraging them to use their energy to enter all the aspects of business and promised KRG's support in return. "The responsibility of providing a stable life and job opportunity is that of the government."

He also urged all the private sector companies and projects to utilize the capabilities of the young workforce.

Barzani shed light on the efforts by his government to create more job opportunities, and said "the government will create more job opportunities through providing more security, working towards building the economic infrastructure and improving the various sectors, and we will continue the marriage, housing and microfinance projects."

Moreover the Prime Minster promised students that the government sponsored scholarships for students to study abroad, which was started by the sixth cabinet, will continue and better procedures have been implemented to guarantee maximum benefits for the students.

"We are also investigating about considering more benefits for limited-income people in the housing projects,"said Barzani.

In another part of his speech, Barzani asked the region's universities to conduct more research about the genocide campaigns against Kurds and their impacts in all aspects, such as the impacts of the region's destruction by the previous regimes on the Kurdish society and individuals, the best ways to build the region's infrastructure, improving the agriculture sector, eradicating family violence, violence against women and solving the social problems in Kurdish society.

Barzani continued his speech by talking about the current political situations in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region and explained that Kurdistan Region is passing through a very sensitive stage due to the political crisis currently exists in the country and the threats on the pillars on which the current Iraqi state is established.

He explained that despite the fact that Kurdish nation waited much longer than the duration provided by the constitution, none of the key issues such as the Kurdistan Region's border, Article 140, Peshmerga, oil and gas law and oil revenues have yet been resolved.

Barzani described these issues as important and vital points for the Kurdish nation and reiterated that the breach of the constitution and the negligence of its articles concerning the Kurdistan nation are no longer accepted.

Barzani asked the central government not to mix their rights and duties with the political issues.

"The Iraqi government should not let political conflicts impact its judgment in treating the Kurdish people," he said.

"These rights and shares should not be used as pressure cards on any region or province."

In another part of the speech, Kurdistan Region's Premier talked about the decision by the Iraqi government to stop sending the fuel share to the Kurdistan Region and said,"In the past few years Kurdistan Region's share in fuel has not been given completely, and the beginning of this year, and especially last month this share has been significantly reduced in a way that if it was not the Region's efforts and its recent years, policies in the oil and gas sector, Kurdistan would have now lived in a very dangerous situation in this hot weather, as electricity is nowadays a major requirement for the life of the people as well as the services and operations of the Kurdistan Regional Government as well as the private sector."

"All of these are related to electricity and if we hadn't done that, life would have stopped in Erbil, Sulaimaniya, Duhok and Kirkuk without power," added Barzani.

'The Kurdistan Region's Oil and Gas Law has been developed based on the rights given to the Kurdistan Region in the Iraqi constitution and despite all the external barriers and internal criticism and resistance, the greatest objective has been the people's welfare, and it has served as the inspiration which has headed towards success."

Prime Minster Barzani told the attendants that today Kurdistan Region has an opportunity that oil revenues can become a source of a brighter future and a path for development of the region instead of being used to buy weapons against the nation of this very region.

According to Barzani, thanks to its growing oil reserves, Kurdistan is now a well-known name in the global energy markets.

"Hence if we don't mix this important strategic issue with narrow political interests, we can guarantee a very good living and future for the Kurdistan nation."

He also asked that "everyone should deal with this issue wisely and carefully in a way that no obstacle is created on the way towards this historical success of the Kurdistan Region."

He also reiterated that they are trying to unify all their efforts within one single government and that the steps he is taking is the same steps of his deputy and all his government, and their steps are his steps as well.

Barzani also said that transparency has become more and more evident in the budget year after year and all the efforts in this direction are valued highly by the government.

Barzani also told the students and other attendants that Kurdistan Region has an active parliament and that the government is happy with the vigor of the parliament to make the government more active and efficient with its monitoring role.

At the end of his speech, the Region's Prime Minister reiterated his government's commitment to make reforms and announced that "reform has become the objective of the government and that it has a plan for this and has taken many steps towards this objective.".