ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - More than seven months after the election, political parties in Kirkuk are still at an impasse over the position of governor of the disputed province and the Kurdish population is imploring the parties to overcome their grievances and unite.
"If they unite and cooperate, many issues can be resolved, and the problems of this city will be eliminated. I don't understand why they are divided and negotiate separately, each reaching separate agreements. Why can't they come together?" asked Swara Sabah, a resident of Kirkuk.
The winning parties of December’s provincial council elections each claim they are entitled to the post of governor, whose duties are currently being filled by Rakan al-Jabouri.
Jabouri was named acting governor in 2017, after the Kurdish governor was ousted and Kurdish forces were expelled following Kurdistan Region’s independence referendum.
Kirkuk’s Kurds fear that disagreements between the two Kurdish parties - the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) - have squashed their hope to once again have a Kurdish governor.
“The tensions between the KDP and the PUK over the current situation in Kirkuk are not good. It would be better if they reached an agreement to appoint a Kurdish governor for Kirkuk, so these people can rest,” Hemin Adil, a shopkeeper from Kirkuk, told Rudaw.
KDP and PUK have a rocky relationship as fierce rivals who have come together for power-sharing agreements in the past.
The PUK claims that it is entitled to the governorship of the oil-rich city because it won the most seats - five - in December’s poll. The party also has the backing of two Arab council members and the winner of the Christian quota.
However, its bid is contested by the KDP and its alliance with four Arab council members and both Turkmen council members, who have suggested rotating the post between all three ethnic components.
During a televised program with Rudaw earlier this month, Arshad al-Salihi, a Turkmen member of the Iraqi parliament, said that the Turkmen Front, along with the KDP and the Arab members have agreed to share the position on a rotating basis.
PUK spokesperson Saadi Ahmed Pira, who participated in the same program, said that the alliance between the KDP and the Turkmen party “is like putting Kirkuk up for sale.”
“This is a bad move in my opinion, because we have many other joint projects with the KDP… This [alliance] will not succeed… This is a bad and fruitless attempt and the PUK will not allow something like that to succeed,” he said.
The council finally held its first session in mid-July, following calls from Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani to expedite the process. The session lasted for around 10 minutes, with seemingly no progress made on resolving the issues between the parties.
Sudani has facilitated three meetings between representatives of the political parties since December. On Thursday, Sudani received Arab members of the Kirkuk provincial council, highlighting the need to form the local administration.
Hiwa Husamadding contributed to this report
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