Iraq: The Parliament That Barely Meets

The first questioning session was futile; Saber Isawi left his post only to be promoted. He assumed the position of consultant in Maliki’s bureau. The session did not come out with any conclusive information about financial corruption, while the embezzlements of public funds were obvious enough not to be denied.

The interrogation of Isawi, on the other hand, exemplified political targeting. Haidari was ousted, yet behind the scenes there was talk of a political agreement, whose victim was Haidari, to make radical changes in the council that manages the commission so as to encompass all the Iraqi political fabrics — Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.

Even worse, there are many important issues about which the parliament is doing nothing. The sectors of health, electricity and food are rife with corruption. The parliament, however, has not held any of their officials accountable.

The downturn in the security situation and the defensive capacities of the army call for holding accountable prominent security figures. Yet, it would be hard to imagine Maliki and the security leaders standing before the parliament and swallowing the bitter criticisms of MPs who believe that security still is under the thumb of armed groups.

At last, Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi decided to invite Maliki and the commanders of the ministries of interior and defense to discuss the security situation in the aftermath of a series of explosions that hit Baghdad in the middle of March. The worst was the seizure of the Ministry of Defense by al-Qaeda’s insurgents, who used explosive belts and bombs and took the employees as hostages in only an hour, while the facility is located in a fortified region in Baghdad, supposedly hard to be breached given the number of checkpoints.

Maliki, however, apologized for not being able to make it. Al-Monitor was able to secure a copy of a news release in which Maliki said that he “has a meeting with Korean businessmen that have held a conference in Baghdad on March 30 to study the possibilities of investment in Iraq.”