Iraq News Now

Shafaq News / On Sunday, the Kurdistan Region’s Interior Minister Ribar Ahmed emphasized that the Regional Government (KRG) prefers the governor of Kirkuk to be from the Kurdish component.

Ahmed, speaking at a press conference today in Duhok on the sidelines of the graduation ceremony of the American University students, stated, "Negotiations and discussions are ongoing with political parties in Kirkuk to nominate a new governor capable of serving all the people of Kirkuk, regardless of their sects."

He clarified that "every political party in Kirkuk seeks the governor to be under its influence, while KRG prefers the governor to be Kurdish."

For over five months, winning blocs in the Kirkuk Provincial Council elections have failed to agree on a joint proposal to form a local government, with each insisting on assuming the governorship.

On May 25, 2024, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani and representatives and leaders of winning political blocs in the Kirkuk Provincial Council held a meeting, which ended without reaching any agreement, according to a source who informed Shafaq News Agency.

Prior to that, on February 21, the Prime Minister presided over a meeting attended by all winning blocs and set a deadline of March 3 to prepare proposals related to forming a new administration for the governorate and establishing a joint local government.

It is expected that dozens of top administrative positions will be redistributed among the components of Kirkuk, most of which are currently acting, including the chairman of the provincial council and his deputy, the governor and his deputies, the heads of four districts, and directors of 16 sub-districts, in addition to several public directors.

It is noteworthy that Kirkuk conducted its first elections since 2005 on December 18, 2023, where Kurds won seven seats divided into five seats for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), and two seats for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), in addition to a quota seat (Babylon), making a total of eight seats.

Conversely, Arabs won six seats divided as follows: three seats for the Arab Alliance, the Leadership Alliance won two seats, Al-Orouba Alliance won one seat, and the Unified Iraqi Turkmen Front won two seats.

The electoral scene revolves around the equality process in the number of seats between Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmen (8-8), which has prevented any party from forming a local government.

Regarding the selection of the district administrator of Sinjar, Minister Ahmed highlighted the necessity of reaching an agreement among all parties on a single candidate, who would then be nominated by the Nineveh Provincial Council.

Ahmed explained that "the Sinjar issue is different from the rest of the districts as it is related to the Sinjar Agreement signed between Baghdad and Erbil."