AAK does not vote the 2023 draft: Poverty budget, failure in capital investments

Although the budget is nominally the largest ever of 3.4 billion euros, in real terms Haradinaj said it is smaller than the previous year.

If the previous amount is down 20% inflation (according to the World Bank) and the 4.3% inflation the government has seen for 2017, then the real budget value falls to 2.5 billion, which is 400m euros smaller than the 2022” budget.

The AAK will not vote on this bill, Haradinaj said, “since this draft budget -- such as what it is -- has no parameters to preserve economic stability or development, but represents a budget of misery and poverty, and the same will not undergo changes which will be proposed by our parliamentary group”.

Haradinaj's full response:

The Budget of Poverty

For the first time in Kosovo's history, we have a smaller budget compared to the previous year.

The budget seen at the cost limits of 3 billion and 212m euros, nominally 10.8% higher than that of 2022, is actually for a fourth smaller. If the previous amount is reduced by 20% of inflation (according to the World Bank) and the 4.3% inflation the government has seen for 2023, then the real budget value falls to 2.5 billion, which is 400m euros smaller than the 2022 budget.

To be clearer, citizens who receive salaries from the state, civil servants, pensioners and all other categories will be for 25% poorer compared to 2022, because with their salaries they will buy 25% less consumer goods.

With this budget, one-quarter of capital investments will remain lacking, while the income projection itself is done without any financial logic. Inflows from corporate tax or profit tax are expected to increase 41%, revenues from personal income are expected to increase 24%, while wage hikes are realised at 11%. So more taxes for the government, less money for the people.

Funny is the customs and excise revenues projection, which is projected to increase 3.4%, respectively, 4.5%, while increasing import prices is envisioned at 8.5%. You must have finished four years of elementary school to realize that Kurti government has serious problems with simple mathematical operations.

The same routine is in spending structure. While there are 5800 free jobs, and the government is not hiring citizens, they have planned only 1400 employment for 2023 and an increase in wages fund worth 75 million. In these numbers, we don't even see nominal wage growth, so, citizens' poverty is continuing.

The most terrible failure ever, of any government in Kosovo, is exactly government failure Kurti in capital investments.

The prior amount for capital investments, amounting to 810 million, is 90% in large measure only transport from non-resulting investments between 2021 and 2022 (about 500 million).

It is a big question of how this government of failure and fraud is counting on the growth of 2023. Until the volume of private investment has been recorded, while public investments have not yet been realised, what economic growth is the government talking about?

The only extenuating category that will have growth is the <x0 goods and utility”, in large part, 22.3%. The government trumpeting the fight of government luxury has raised the government spending fund to 493m euros, which is 194m higher than in 2020. This made the government Kurti the largest extortioner of the state budget in terms of government spending.

Through the 2023 budget, Kurti's government has been careful to hit the municipalities. This is because municipalities are governed, not by this power, but by opposition parties. Government grants for all municipalities have been added only to 75 million, which does not cover the damage to inflation.

The municipalities have also been reduced by the fund for co-finance, and many problems are being caused in implementing projects from personal revenues in payment procedures.

The government has also hit Education, since pre-eminent, elementary and middle education teachers are seen as disobedient by power. Educators were sentenced by the government with reduced wage funds, namely 293 thousand euros less than in 2022.

We have repeatedly insisted on the urgent adoption of the Law on Salaries, among other things because of inequality among local and central-level employees. For an employee at the central level, the budget allocated 870 euros in gross monthly wages, while for employed at the local level, worth only 540 euros gross monthly pay.

These are a small part of the remarks we have on the 2023 budget project and the mismanagement of the 2022 budget. We will be in constant and very carefully escorting the problems of this nature and inform the country's citizens of full transparency, as the current government is a champion for lack of transparency and manipulation.

Since this draft budget, such as what it is, has no parameters to preserve economic stability or development, but represents a budget of misery and poverty, and the same will not undergo changes which will also be proposed by our parliamentary group, the Alliance will not vote.