Former member of the Parliamentary Oil and Natural Resources Committee, Basim al-Gharibawi, said Iraq’s long-running electricity crisis remains one of the country’s biggest challenges despite years of government spending and repeated promises of improvement.
According to al-Gharibawi, public demonstrations across many provinces continue to focus on electricity shortages and poor service, showing that the problem has not been resolved despite the large amounts of money allocated to the sector over the years.
He argued that successive governments have failed to deliver lasting solutions, even though significant portions of state budgets have been directed toward electricity projects.
Al-Gharibawi also criticized what he described as the dominance of General Electric in Iraq’s electricity sector. He claimed that giving major projects to the American company limited opportunities for other international firms to participate, reducing competition and potentially slowing progress in the sector.
In his view, Iraq should create a more open environment that allows multiple international companies to compete and contribute to the development of electricity infrastructure.
He further called for the electricity sector to become a central focus of anti-corruption efforts. According to al-Gharibawi, all files related to alleged corruption in electricity projects should be made public so citizens can better understand why the crisis has continued despite years of spending and government changes.
He stressed that transparency is essential if Iraq hopes to identify the root causes of the problem and restore public confidence.
Al-Gharibawi also urged the government to maintain its anti-corruption campaign and take advantage of the public support behind those efforts. He noted that many previous governments launched anti-corruption initiatives but later failed to follow through on their promises.
For him, addressing corruption and improving accountability are key steps toward solving the electricity crisis and meeting the expectations of Iraqi citizens who continue to demand reliable power services and better infrastructure.
His comments reflect ongoing frustration over Iraq’s electricity sector, which remains one of the country’s most sensitive political and economic issues despite decades of investment and reform efforts.
