Kurdistan parliament speaker calls on presidential push for long-awaited constitution

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Kurdistan Region’s parliament speaker on Sunday called on President Nechirvan Barzani to urge all political parties in the Region to prepare for the writing and approval of a contemporary constitution after a decade of delays. 

Dr Rewaz Fayeq and her deputy Hemin Hawrami met with Barzani in Erbil to discuss the latest political developments in the Kurdistan Region as well as ongoing dialogue with Baghdad over continuously lingering budget issues and territorial disputes.

“In the meeting, they stressed on preparation for writing a contemporary constitution that is approved by the nation and has national consensus, a constitution that respects the rights of all communities, the principles of human rights and democracy,” a readout from the parliament stated. “This is a necessity at this stage.”

The two also spoke about the need for better coordination between the Kurdistan Region’s parliament, government and presidency in a bid to better support the resolution of outstanding Erbil-Baghdad disagreements. 

“The situation of the Region and political developments in the area require that the three presidencies of the Region, parliament and government meet in order to forge better coordination between them.”

Fayeq and Barzani also “agreed that the reform process in the Kurdistan Region should succeed.”

Lacking a functioning constitution, the Kurdistan Region currently has a presidential governance system. A constitution drafted by political parties in 2008 was approved a year later, but a public vote on it has yet to be held.

All political parties in the Kurdistan Region concur that it is necessary to have a functioning constitution at this stage, Fayeq told Rudaw English. Disagreements between political parties on certain aspects of the constitution should be settled before an amended version of the constitution is sent to the parliament for a vote, and before a public vote is held on it, she added.

The Kurdistan Region continues to grapple with disputes over its Baghdad budget share and territories claimed by both governments.

Another major challenge is corruption. High-level officials within the ruling Kurdish parties have acknowledged the lack of transparency in revenues and expenditure.

New Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Masrour Barzani has vowed to confront corruption at all levels and undertake profound reforms at government institutions suffering from cumbersome bureaucracy.

"My top objective is to combat corruption and carry out reform," Barzani said during his swearing-in ceremony in July.