By Sabah Jerges
Agence France Presse, 24 May 2007
BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki nominated six new ministers on Thursday in a bid to end the sectarian infighting that paralysed his beleaguered government during its first year in office.
Maliki told parliament that his candidates to fill the posts vacated six weeks ago by followers of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr were chosen for their knowledge and ability rather than party affiliations.
"If we are late in announcing the names it is because we reviewed many names and CVs," he told parliament, days after the first anniversary of his rule. "We believe these nominees are the best we can get."
The premier also thanked Sadr's faction for pulling out of the government and giving him a chance "to select more qualified people for the posts."
Sadr's 30-seat parliamentary bloc was key to Maliki being elected prime minister over other rival Shiite candidates a year ago, but it left government when the premier refused to back a timetable for the withdrawal of US forces.
"I would love to give any future ministry to people from outside the parliamentary blocs," Maliki told reporters after his speech, while the fractious chamber settled down to consider the credentials of his choices.
Just over a year ago, Maliki formed Iraq's first permanent post-invasion unity government that brought together all the major political forces but proved hamstrung by sectarian bickering.
Ministries were essentially handed out as political prizes to the various factions -- many of them sectarian or ethnic -- to buy their allegiance to the government, and ministers were rarely chosen for their expertise.
Omar Abdel Sattar Mahmud of the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party, which has repeatedly threatened to pull out of the government, noted how ministries from rival parties refused to cooperate.
"The responsibility of any failure lies on all parties, each according to his post and position in the government," he said, adding that Maliki was not entirely to blame for the flawed structure.
"The problem is that the political agreements on which the government was formed were not implemented," agreed Hamid Muala al-Saadi, a lawmaker from the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, a powerful Shiite party.
"This is one of the government's deadly sicknesses," he added.
Maliki has repeatedly, most recently in Thursday's address, called for greater unity in the country and insists he is serious about implementing a project of national reconciliation.
The United States, in particular, is pressuring Maliki's administration to take action and
President George W. Bush said Thursday as lawmakers were set to vote on
Iraq war funds that Baghdad "needs to show real progress."
The legislation "reflects a consensus that the Iraqi government needs to show real progress in return for America's continued support and sacrifice," he said at a press conference at the White House.
US ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker for his part congratulated Maliki on his first year in office, while emphasising the need to pass certain laws and push reconciliation.
"These are tasks that must be completed, and completed soon, to achieve the national reconciliation that the vast majority of Iraqis desire," he said.
Veteran Kurdish lawmaker Mahmud Othman, however, said that this US pressure was not helpful and reflected a double standard in US views towards Iraq which contributed to the failures of the last year.
"On one hand Bush emphasises his support to the government of Maliki but on the other hand he encourages the efforts against him by the other Arab countries... with the aim of putting pressure on him," he complained.
"They pressure him and scare him so that he will do what they tell him."
Maliki's nominees are Ali al-Bahadli for agriculture, Sabah Rasul Sadeq for health, Amer Abdel Jabbar Ismail for transport, Thamer Jaafar Mohammed al-Zubaidi for civil society, Kholud Sami Azar al-Maajun for provincial affairs and Zuhair Mohammed Ridha Sharba for tourism.
The parliament will vote on them Sunday.
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Citation: Sabah Jerges. "One year on, Iraq government tries new tack," Agence France Presse, 24 May 2007.
Original URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070524/wl_mideast_afp/iraqpolitics--------------------------