President Barzani: The KDP has no veto on any party
The formation of the 10th cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government remains pending dialogue among Kurdistan’s political parties. The international community, particularly the European Union and the United States, has repeatedly called for the swift formation of the cabinet, as the region’s current circumstances cannot afford further delays in this process.
After the announcement of the preliminary results of the sixth term of Kurdistan parliamentary elections, the next step of the political parties is to form a government; According to the constitution and law, the presidency of the parliament should be elected, and the new cabinet should be formed within a specified period.
Step 1: The legal mechanism for forming the new Kurdistan Regional Government is as follows: within 10 days of the election results being certified by the commission, the President of the Kurdistan Region will call the parliament to convene. In the first session, by an absolute majority of 50+1, the Speaker of Parliament is elected. Following the formal oath-taking, the legal term of the Kurdistan Region presidency ends, and the parliament begins its work.
Step 2: The second step involves the Kurdistan Region Parliament opening nominations for the presidency of the Kurdistan Region for a period of 30 days. The President of the Kurdistan Region is then elected by an absolute majority of two-thirds of the parliamentary votes.
The elected President of the Kurdistan Region takes the constitutional oath. Following this step, the President assigns the candidate of the largest parliamentary faction to form the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Council of Ministers within 15 days after the presidential election.
The prime minister appoints the ministers within 30 days. The prime minister-designate submits the names of the ministers and the government agenda to parliament. The ministers are voted on individually and the government agenda is approved by an absolute majority of parliament.
To clarify the significance of forming the cabinet, the Barzani headquarters released an official statement: “On November 4, 2024, President Masoud Barzani received U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, Alina Romanowski, in Salahaddin.”
President Barzani thanked the international community and the High Election Commission for their role in the success of the Kurdistan parliamentary elections despite some technical problems. In another part of the meeting, the steps to form the new government and negotiations between the parties were discussed, and President Barzani said that the KDP has formed a team to discuss the formation of the government and the agenda of the next government, stressing that “The KDP has no veto on any party.”
US Ambassador to Iraq Alina Romanowski said on the social network (X) that she met with Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) President Nechirvan Barzani and Prime Minister Masrour Barzani.
The US ambassador also called on all political parties in the Kurdistan Region to speed up the formation of a new cabinet.
Romanowski also thanked the citizens of the Kurdistan Region for their commitment to the democratic system.
Ali Hussein, a member of the KDP Political Bureau, said that the elections were held democratically, and the weight of each party was shown.
“The KDP has no veto on any political party that is ready to implement the agenda of the next government,” he said.
He stressed that the next government should be the government of the people, and the political parties should no longer replace the government in running the country’s affairs.
“We will form a delegation on the basis that we have no veto for any party for negotiations, and our door is open to the parties,” Hemin Hawrami, head of KDP’s Organisations Office, told a news conference. “In the post-election period, the KDP is committed to its slogans of peace, prosperity, and unity so that we can resist together,” he said.
Hawrami also mentioned, “We have announced our program as the party’s program for the new cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government, within the framework of the Kurdistan Democratic Party’s slogans.” He added, “Other sides also had their programs, so there are common points between our programs, and it is important to find those common points.”
He emphasized, “It is crucial that we set a program for the next four years in a Kurdish spirit, aiming for one region, one government, one parliament, and one Peshmerga force.” He added, “We do not need a partner who leaves halfway; we will engage in dialogue with all parties based on the program we have presented.”
“The formation of the cabinet should be hastened because the situation in the region must be taken into account and the threat of war should be a lesson for them,” Sherwan Haidari, former KRG Justice Minister, told The Kurdish Globe. The political forces should hurry to form it, and the tenth cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government should be based on the votes and seats that the parties won in this election. He added that the principles of democracy should no longer be violated, and the will and voice of the Kurdish people should not be devalued. If any party wants to return to the 50+50 system as before, the Kurdish people will not accept this.
The Kurdish Globe