The ongoing battle for power in Baghdad

FOR years, Iraq’s political crisis and security situation remained top priority of the Arabs. However, three years after the American withdrawal from Iraq and with the eruption of the so-called Arab Spring, Iraqi issues took a backseat.
That doesn’t mean that the struggle to gain influence in Iraq has ceased, conversely it continues at all levels. The results of the recently concluded Iraqi elections reveal the fragmentations in the Iraqi political arena. The situation is against the hopes of the political project designers.
At a time when political pundits were expecting Iraqis to head toward inclusive politics and formation of parties with clear programs for stability in the country, the emerging political scenario is completely different. Parties have further split to even smaller ones.
Of course, the multitude of political powers, no matter how small they are, reflect the sorry state of Iraqi politics. The administration of Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki is to be blamed for the current situation. Although he stayed in power for eight years, he failed to help Iraqis reach reconciliation, particularly after the US pulled its troops out of Iraq. Instead of joining the Iraqis in broader and larger forces, it exercised the policy of exclusion and marginalization.
Many accuse the regime of poll rigging. The less skeptical people believe they were designed to maintain status quo. Whatever the case might be, the results are a reality that needs to be dealt with. The question is: Who leads Iraq? The answer will come at the end of the consultations of the next six weeks. Al-Maliki, who won most of the seats, needs the backing of more than 60 other parliamentarians to return as prime minister. Then, he will become the second longest ruling leader in Iraq’s history after Saddam Hussein.
He is expected to run the country on his own, thus ending the institutionalized system that Americans hoped to build.
If Al-Maliki fails in mustering the support required for the coveted post, candidates from two main religious parties — Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and the Sadrists — might be considered for the premiership. Both parties’ leaders have never been in a leading role before, however, both parties insist they won’t choose religious men as ruling candidates. They claim that they will go for civilians.
Whether Al-Maliki remains in power or a new political face emerges, the Iraqi issue post-2003 invasion remains the same.
The country needs stability. The state has failed to control terrorism. Secondly, there is an urgent need for development. Iraq has a rich government with poor people. Third, there is a need for political reconciliation. A rapprochement between political forces could extend the life of the regime for decades to come and could usher Iraq into a new era of progress and prosperity. Without security and reconciliation,
Iraq will remain a battleground for the opposition’s clutter and the ruler’s dictatorship, regardless of who becomes the prime minister.