The Diyala provincial council in a meeting away from the cameras and late last night decided the majority of the posts of the administrative units of the province, the Kurds got two posts of mayor of Khanaqin and director of Saadiyah district.
The posts decided included more than 10 district mayors and a number of sub-district mayors, according to the election results of the winning parties and coalitions.
The 15 members of the Diyala Council were first divided into two teams: The Team of Eight and the Team of Seven. The two teams include a mixture of Shiite and Sunni parties seeking to secure the largest number of senior positions in the local government in their favor.
Diyala Provincial Council consists of 15 seats, four of which are allocated to women. Diyala province is home to 1.6 million people, 90,000 of whom live in the center of the Khanaqin dominantly Kurdish district, according to estimates by the Central Bureau of Statistics for 2019.
The election of the council president, governor, and their deputies took place on August 04 at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad.
Later, a new coalition was formed by nine out of 15 members, excluding the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan PUK, which did not participate. The other parties were the same ones that held an emergency meeting in mid August at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad, resulting in the election of the council speaker, governor, and deputies after months of controversy.
At least 10 district mayor were appointed at the meeting of Baquba, Khanaqin, Khalis, Mandali, Oudhem and Baladruz were elected, but Sharaban as the only district was postponed due to disagreements among the different factions.
According to information obtained by KirkukNow from a source close to the meetings, the reason for holding the meetings at night and away from the cameras, was to prevent the media from influencing the course of the agreement between the parties.
The fears came after the formation of the Diyala local government itself eight months later on August 4, after much debate and disagreement between the communities over the post of governor.
Soran Bajalan was elected as the mayor of Khanaqin, the siputed area between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government KRG. Mohammed Shakrachi, a Kurd, was appointed mayor of Saadiyah district, candidate by the Badr OrganizATION.
Ali Majid was elected as the mayor of Mandali on the share of the coordination framework. Saib Harbi was appointed mayor of Jaloula district on the Taqadum party, the same party took the post of mayor of Karatapa district for Taha Ibrahim Juburi while Abdul Karim Juburi was appointed mayor of Jabara district.
Last night's session did not go without problems, due to disagreements over the appointment of posts. Darya Khairullah, a Kurdish member of the Diyala provincial council on behalf of the foundation coalition, announced her separation from the Diyala Security and Stability Coalition.
No member of the Diyala provincial council was available last night despite several phone calls.
*This story has been produced as part of the 'Budget is Your Right' initiative, with support from the National Democratic Institute (NDI).
