The deadlock in parliament between opponents and supporters
of Iraq’s Prime Minister Haidar Abadi was temporarily overcome when lawmakers
were able to create a quorum and vote on a partial list of the premier’s new
cabinet. On April
26, 170-180 members of parliament met, confirmed that Salim Jabouri was
still the speaker, and approved five new ministers submitted by Abadi. Those
were Ali Ghani al-Mubarak for Health, Hassan al-Janabi for Water, Wafa
Jaffar al-Mahadawi for Labor, Abdul Razaq Al-Aysa for Higher Education, and Ali
Dishar for Electricity. Over one hundred MPs had been conducting a sit
in, and voted out Jabouri earlier, but the Speaker has claimed that was
illegal. They tried to disrupt
the session shouting and throwing water bottles, which was led
by members of former Premier Nouri al-Maliki’s wing of State of Law. They were
successful in driving the other lawmakers out of the main parliament room into
an alternate location, but they could not stop the proceedings. There was talk about the opposition
lawmakers trying to form a permanent block, and they were also going
to court over legality of the session. The fact that they were not able to
stop the vote however was a major defeat for them after they had been able to disrupt
the government for several days. As for the rest of the new cabinet there are
still talks going on amongst the ruling parties, and disagreements. On the
other hand, Moqtada al-Sadr called off his demonstrations outside the Green
Zone with a spokesman
saying that the vote on the ministers was a positive first step, but more was
needed.
Abadi’s changes have threatened the entire political system
in Iraq. As Mustafa Habib pointed out in Niqash,
Abadi’s proposal for new ministers has caused all kinds of splits within the
government, especially amongst the Shiite parties. State of Law was divided
between pro-Badi and pro-Maliki factions, and Sadr’s Ahrar bloc and the Supreme
Council’s Mutawin came down on different sides of the vote against Speaker
Jabouri even though they were in an alliance beforehand. More importantly, the
premier’s suggestion of a technocratic set of ministers threatens not only the
quotas that determine who gets what public offices, but the elites’ control
over the government. The ministries are the main way the parties rule by doling
out patronage and stealing from the public coffers to enrich themselves. The
new cabinet would be loyal to Abadi instead of the lists, which would
dramatically change the power dynamic in Baghdad. It was quite an
accomplishment then to get five ministers approved, although the way talks are
progressing other cabinet members maybe partisan in order to get approved.
SOURCES
AIN, “Deputy of the session: Maliki wing stirred chaos to
prevent the passing of ministerial cabinet,” 4/26/16
- “Fatlawi Sayadi squatting and throwing bottles of water to
disrupt the cabinet reshuffle,” 4/26/16
- “Urgent Jabouri threatening legal action against the
deputies that violated the majority rules of procedure,” 4/26/16
Habib, Mustafa, “Chaos in Baghdad: The Good, The Bad, The
Ugly Reasons Why Real political Reform Is Impossible In Iraq,” Niqash, 4/21/16
Iraq News Network, “Parliament sit-ins offer an appeal to
the Federal Court for Parliament’s session yesterday,” 4/27/16
Iraq Oil Report, “UPDATE: Chaotic Parliament confirms five
new ministers,” 4/26/16
Al Mada, “Abadi flirts with coalition with Allawi to pass
his plans for list of ministries,” 4/22/16
- “House sit-ins resort to reference after the withdrawal of
some of their colleagues following threats by the blocs,” 4/17/16
- “Parliament ends session and votes on closed envelope
ministers .. And Abadi promises more changes in two days,” 4/26/16
Morris, Loveday and Salim, Mustafa, “Thousands of protesters
threaten to storm Iraq’s parliament,” Washington Post, 4/26/16
National Iraqi News Agency, “A Parliamentary Source: Some
MPs Tried To Attack Abadi When Attending To Parliament,” 4/26/16
New Sabah, “Opposition front forming in parliament with
about 120 deputies to change the performance of the legislature,” 4/27/16
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