Militia leader calls for change in Iraq's system of government

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A leader in the Fatih Alliance called for a change in Iraq’s system of government, from a parliamentary one to a presidential system, claiming this step would “save the country” from arbitrary allocations of posts and corruption.

Qais al-Khazali, leader of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq faction in the Iran-backed Hashd al-Shaabi, known in English as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), shared his observations on Wednesday. His militia group is among the most powerful ones in Iraq.

“There are no real solutions with a parliamentary system that governs the country by quota, and the situation will continue to lead to corruption and misconduct because the regime operates on a quota system,” Khazali wrote on his Twitter account.

لاحل حقيقي مع وجود نظام برلماني يحكم البلد بالمحاصصة وسيبقى الوضع يؤدي إلى فساد ومفسدين لأن النظام نظام محاصصة ولذلك ندعو الجميع إلى التعاون في تغيير هذا النظام إلى نظام رئاسي أو شبه رئاسي ينقذ البلد.#عيد_الأضحى_المبارك

— قيس الخزعلي (@Qais_alkhazali) August 22, 2018

Following an unofficial power-sharing tradition in Iraq, the prime minister must be Shia, the president a Kurd, while the speaker must be Sunni.

“We, therefore, call upon all [political entities] to cooperate in changing this system to a presidential or semi-presidential one to save the country,” Khazali appealed online. His faction won 17 seats in the May 12 contested national election.

A change in the Constitution of Iraq—which defines the country as an Islamic, democratic, federal parliamentary republic—would be required if one is to go from a parliamentary system to a presidential one.

Participants in drafting the constitution say the parliamentary system was approved to avoid a dictatorial regime, such as the one under Saddam Hussein, to arise in Iraq again.

Editing by Nadia Riva