Turan seeks to merge local, legislative

Vice-Chairman of the Iraqi Turkmen Front Hassan Turan blamed the Iraqi government for the delayed liberation of Hawija district, west Kirkuk governorate. He added that the liberation of Hawija cannot be delayed as the people living under the Islamic State (ISIS) rule are suffering shortages of water, food, and health care.
 
He said, in an interview to Arabs Today, that the Iraqi government delayed the military operation because of its internal conflicts and the individual decisions of each department.
 
Turan suggested to integrate the local elections with the legislative elections, and suggested issuing a special election law in Kirkuk, in accordance with the rule of the Federal Court in this regard. He said that the government has submitted on 17 January the provincial elections bill to the Parliament for approval, adding that the final date of the elections, suggested to be in September, will be determined by the Parliament.
 
Turan, who is also a member of the parliamentary legal committee, revealed that the Parliament tends to merge the local and legislative elections and formulate a united elections law. He noted that Chapter VII of the election draft law will put the organizing regulation of local elections in Kirkuk, adding that several parts of the new law should be subject to debate. He asserted that the debate should address the situation of the occupied territories by ISIS, especially south Kirkuk and Hawija.
 
The Iraqi Cabinet decided on Tuesday to hold the provincial elections on 16 September, while the Federal Court had issued earlier a decision demanding the Parliament to issue a special elections law for Kirkuk province, taking into account its current situation.
 
Turan pointed out that the government should implement the three key procedures mentioned in the election draft law, as well as the liberation of Hawija, because it would be very difficult to hold any elections in Kirkuk without liberating Hawija.
 
He explained that the provincial elections draft law stipulates that the government should review voter registration in Kirkuk and the distribution of posts among all nationalities in the province, as well as ensure their safety.
 
Kirkuk did not hold the provincial elections that took place in Iraq in 2009 and 2013, due to the dispute between the province's ethnics. Following the fall of the former regime in 2003, the provincial council included representatives of the three main ethnics, to regulate the province's affairs and fill the administrative and legislative vacuum.