ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Ayad Allawi, the man who is not Iraq’s prime minister despite winning at the 2010 polls, blames the country’s violence and instability on an incompetent government, badly trained forces and a constitution that he says was forced on Iraqis by American invaders.
“All the killings and bombings are happening and the security forces aren’t able to cope, because they are unprofessional and there is no proper military hierarchy,” Allawi said in a Facebook Q&A with fans.
“The the security forces are built and run by certain political groups and the government itself admits that these forces have been infiltrated and are incapable of doing their job,” says Allawi, insisting that an army should be trained for protection of all Iraqis, not just those with certain religious or ethnic backgrounds.
Allawi, Iraq’s first prime minister after the invasion and once seen as the “strongman” who would put the country back together, has been sidelined ever since he was swindled out of his victory at the 2010 polls.
His Sunni-dominated but secular bloc won the largest number of votes, but the premiership evaded him after the Shiite and Kurdish blocs agreed to form a joint government, with Nuri al-Maliki as prime minister.
“I had two choices before me: Either resist and lead the country into more ruin, or to let go of my victory for the sake of the Iraqi people,” he explains, complaining that even that “gesture of goodwill” went unacknowledged.
Immediately after American troops overthrew Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003, the Iraqi army, police and security forces were disbanded, on grounds their hands were soaked in the blood of Iraqi people.
But many believed that dissolving Iraq’s experienced army was a major blow that would take the country years to overcome.
Allawi says that as prime minister in 2004 he tried to build a new and better army.
“I established a large army and police forces,” he says. “We also launched a national reconciliation campaign in order to lay the foundation stone of a healthy political system in Iraq.”
Now, says Allawi, the government embraces armed groups and does not try to suppress or eradicate them.
Allawi gained notoriety when he allowed US troops and the Iraqi army to attack the Shiite Mahdi Army in the holy city of Najaf in 2004.
His name was tarnished in the eyes of some Shiite Iraqis after that battle which killed many Iraqis and partly destroyed the city’s historical cemetery.
Though a Shiite by birth, Allawi is one of Iraq’s prominent secular politicians.
“I personally don’t believe in mixing politics with religion,” he said in response to a follower who asked why Iraqi politicians were so divided. “I don’t believe in sectarianism, and I want an independent judicial system.”
Asked by another follower why he does not attend parliament sessions, Allawi explained: “More than two years ago we proposed a new oil and gas and revenue-distribution legislation, but the government did let it be debated in parliament, or present its own alternative. What is the point of going to parliament then?”
Allawi partly blames the Americans for forcing a new constitution on the Iraqi people.
“I strongly support the idea of amending the constitution because, where in the world would you write a constitution in just two months?” The Americans, who pressured us Iraqis to draft a constitution, it took them 14 years to draft their own, and they still make changes to it.”
Allawi believes that he has been made into a political pariah because of his strong views on Iran and the United States.
“The question is: do my politics and agenda go in line with what America wants? No. I was even against the invasion. I believed in change from within Iraq.”
Regarding Iran, Iraq’s powerful neighbor that has strong ties to Maliki and his government, Allawi said: “Iran wants to harm the nationalist trend in Iraq and harm the figures that lead this path. I have nothing against Iran. I only say that Iran interferes in the affairs of Iraq and refuses to discuss unresolved bilateral issues.”
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