EXCLUSIVE: Armed-group alignment shapes race for Iraq’s first deputy speaker
Shafaq News – Baghdad
Iraq’s Shiite Coordination Framework (CF), the largest parliamentary bloc, has an internal understanding to allocate the post of first deputy speaker of parliament to political forces that possess weapons or are close to armed factions, a senior figure within the alliance said on Sunday.
Fahd Al-Jubouri, a leader in the Wisdom Movement (Al-Hikma) led by Ammar Al-Hakim, told Shafaq News that the understanding has shaped internal discussions but has not yet produced agreement on a specific nominee, as several figures continue to compete for the post.
According to Al-Jubouri, negotiations currently center on the Sadiqoun parliamentary bloc, which represents Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Labor and Social Affairs Minister Ahmed al-Asadi of the election-winning Reconstruction and Development (Al-Ima'ar wal Tanmiya), and First Deputy Speaker Mohsen al-Mandlawi of the National Foundation (Al-Asas) Coalition, with talks ongoing among the three sides and a decision potentially emerging in the coming hours.
Meanwhile, a CF source said the unresolved talks have expanded the race, confirming that Yasser Sakhil of the State of Law Coalition has entered the contest alongside Adnan Fayhan of Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Al-Asadi, and Al-Mandlawi.
Speaking with our agency, the source added that the Framework has urged its political partners to finalize their nominees for the speakership and the second deputy speaker during the inaugural session, amid concerns that unresolved disputes could affect attendance.
Read more: Iraq’s Parliament Speakership vote: Stress test ahead of Dec. 29
The Iraqi Council of Representatives is scheduled to convene the first session of its sixth legislative term on Monday at noon, during which lawmakers will take the constitutional oath and elect the speaker and two deputies, according to parliament’s media department.
Under Iraq’s post-2003 power-sharing arrangement, the speaker is allocated to a Sunni Arab, the first deputy speaker to a Shiite Arab, and the second deputy speaker to a Kurd.
Read more: Iraq’s speakership: Two decades of constitutional rules and backroom deals
