Iraq’s al-Sudani’s bloc: 80 MPs absent since 2022
Shafaq News – Baghdad
About 80 Iraqi lawmakers have never attended a single parliamentary session since the current term began in January 2022, a bloc led by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani disclosed on Thursday.
Frequent session delays due to absenteeism have become a major obstacle, often blocking quorum during debates on key legislation. Observers note that lawmakers’ focus on election campaigns and divided loyalties has further weakened the legislature, leaving many bills unresolved.
Read more: A Lost Term: Iraq’s weakest parliament since 2003
Parliament had been scheduled to meet on October 1 to vote on 11 economic, social, health, and rights-related bills before the election campaign begins on October 3. But repeated failures to reach quorum forced the session’s cancellation, despite Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani’s appeals for MPs to return to the chamber.
Hamid al-Shiblawi, a member of the Reconstruction and Development bloc led by al-Sudani, noted to Shafaq News that parliament has failed for 15 days to meet quorum, criticizing the presidency for not penalizing absent lawmakers despite rules requiring dismissal after five consecutive absences.
