ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani on Saturday met with Kurdish parties and a Christian representative from the disputed province of Kirkuk in a bid to strike an understanding about forming the local government and finally electing a governor, nearly eight months after the provincial vote. Under the law, the parties have just a week left to reach an agreement.
Sudani separately met with members of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and a member of the province’s Christian community, according to a statement from his office.
“These meetings were part of his ongoing efforts to facilitate an agreement among national forces to form a local government in Kirkuk province,” the statement said.
In the meetings, Sudani stressed the “urgent need” for the formation of a “cohesive” local government.
Since the election last December, Kurds, Arabs and Turkmen have not been able to agree on a governor, with each component claiming the right to the position, leaving Kirkuk’s local government in limbo.
“Sudani stated that it is important for the provincial council to be established within the legal timeframe following the first council meeting, based on an agreement between the parties and the distribution of posts according to election results,” Ahmed Kirkuki, a PUK member of the council, told Rudaw’s Hardi Mohammed.
The PUK won five spots in Kirkuk’s 16-seat council in December’s provincial elections. Its ally, the Babylon Movement, took one seat and the KDP took two, while Arab parties won six and Turkmen two. The council had its first meeting on July 11 and by law, it must fill all positions within 30 days.
The Kurdish parties have been divided and separately held meetings with Arabs and Turkmens to try and reach an agreement. The KDP initially reached a deal with Arabs and Turkmens that excluded the PUK, which did a similar move to form its own coalition, but neither has materialized.
Sudani has separately had meetings with the Arab and Turkmen parties over the past two weeks.
Since the fall of the Ba’athist regime in 2003, Kurds and Arabs have dominated the top post in Kirkuk. The governor was a Kurd until October 2017 when federal forces returned to the province after the Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum and appointed Rakan al-Jabouri as acting governor.
Jabouri, a Sunni politician and head of the council’s Arab coalition, served as acting governor for the past six years. He presided over the first provincial council meeting.
Kirkuk has never had a governor from the Turkmen or Christian communities.
