After more than 250,000 Syrians objected to the government’s decision to lift subsidies—pointing out that the decision included errors and failures, as well as miscalculations in some cases that the government needed to correct—Prime Minister Hussein Arnous confirmed that there would be an ongoing review of the subsidies issue to achieve better justice. According to Arnous, the review will address the decision’s results and how to handle certain cases based on specific rules and controls.
On Saturday, Arnous chaired an afternoon meeting that included several ministers concerned with the implementation of the subsidy restructuring system and directing the scheme towards its intended beneficiaries; conducting a preliminary assessment of the system’s direct outcomes; the stages reached by the relevant ministries in addressing objections submitted through the purpose-built electronic platform; and the need to speed up the final resolution.
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During the meeting, Arnous stressed the importance of networking between all ministries and their full coordination to overcome gaps as soon as they arise. The ministries must continue to process objection requests and complete the correction procedure as quickly as possible. Arnous also highlighted the government’s trend towards increased targeting of the neediest demographics—which need more support in various respects—in addition to the subsidies currently provided to them by the state for essentials and commodities.
As part of the review of the scheme’s application, as well as the “injustices” recorded over the past few days, the meeting reached several decisions. These included limiting exclusion from the subsidy system to commercial registry holders from the outstanding to the third category. Fourth-degree commercial registry holders are considered outside the subsidy scheme, and a family is not excluded if one of its members (other than the head of the family) has a commercial register; rather, that individual is excluded personally.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
