After issing the Presidential Order No. 117 issued in the Official journal on the evening of Wednesday, on September 22 nd, 2021, the President of the Republic, Kais Saied, decided to suspend all the functions of Parliament and lift the immunity of its members, in addition to putting an end to all grants and privileges granted to the Parliament Speaker’s Rached Ghannouchi and his deputies. What is the cost of these grants? How much will it provide to the state treasury during the remaining three months before the end of this year?
Representatives’ grants: how much does the state provide?
In this report, we will rely on the Finance Law of 2021, which allocated 46 million and 499 thousand dinars to the Assembly of People’s Representatives.
We can categorize into 4 sections: rental expenses, management expenses, intervention expenses, and investment expenses.
It should be mentioned that, the Parliament’s expenditure distribution documents show that most of the Legislative Council’s budget is allocated to leasing expenditures at a value of 33 million and 558 thousand dinars, equivalent to more than 72 percent of the total value of the budget.
It is worth noting that, the rental expenses are not exclusively allocated to deputies, but include direct agents, numbering 464, in addition to those directly in the customs, numbering 10.
On the other hand, the rental of members of the Assembly of People’s Representatives accounts for the largest part of the expenditures at a value of 18 million and 88 thousand dinars, and thus the state allocates more than one billion per month. And 500 for deputies’ wages, which means that the President of the Republic’s decision to suspend granting members of the House of People’s Representatives will provide the state treasury with a value of about 4521 million dinars.
Privileges of the Speaker and his two representatives
The Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People Rached Ghannoichi , who is approved by the majority of its members, enjoys the privileges of the head of government represented in two functional cars with the provision of drivers and 700 liters of gasoline per month, in addition to two assistants who work in the concerned’s house, in addition to a close guard provided by the General Administration of Head of State Security and official figures.
As for the first and second representatives, the state provides them with a functional car and 400 liters of gasoline.
Among the “higher” jobs in the Legislative Council, the 10 direct officials in the Diwan, according to the Finance Law of 2021, include a chief of staff, with the privileges of a minister, which are represented in two employee cars, drivers and two helpers inside the house, along with at least 500 liters of gasoline.
