The Diyala Provincial Council has not been able to hold any sessions for 57 days due to disagreements between council members and political parties in the province, which observers believe has negatively affected the council's reputation.
The council's last meeting was held on December 31 of last year, and since then, the council has failed to secure the legal quorum to hold sessions, which requires the attendance of eight members out of a total of 15 council members.
Aws Ibrahim, a member of the provincial council from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan PUK bloc, told KirkukNow, "the reason for not holding sessions is due to political conflicts and disagreements between the council blocs, which led to the lack of a quorum. This situation is normal due to the conflict over some positions, but harmony prevails among us as members of the council."
"We exercise our oversight role on a daily basis and submit our reports every 15 days to the deputy speaker of the council who heads the committees," he stressed.
However, the council member believes that not holding sessions has affected the legislative process and disrupted projects that need to be voted on by the council.
The 15 members of the Diyala Council initially split into two groups: The Team of Eight and the Team of Seven. These teams consisted of a combnation of Shiite and Sunni parties vying to obtain the majority of senior positions within the local government.
Subsequently, a new coalition was established by nine out of the 15 members, with the PUK choosing not participate. The remaining parties were the ones that convened for an urgent meeting in Baghdad last August, which led to the selection of the council speaker, governor, and deputies following months of dispute.
The formation of the local government in Diyala faced major obstacles, which led to the birth of a weak government
Civil activist Ali Al-Hajjiya told KirkukNow, "There has been no consensus among the council members since the announcement of the election results, and a state of division prevails among them, in addition to the continuation of conspiracies between political parties within the council since its formation."
"As you know, the formation of the local government in Diyala faced major obstacles, which led to the birth of a weak government, and the situation has not stabilized yet because the political parties that have representatives in the council cannot reach an understanding on any issue," he added.
The local government in Diyala was formed on August 1, 2024, nine months after the provincial council elections that were held on December 18, 2023. This delay, similar to what happened in Kirkuk, is due to sharp ethnic, religious, and sectarian differences.
"The council failed to hold seven sessions due to the lack of a legal quorum. This negatively affects the council's reputation and reinforces citizens' conviction that its presence is not useful," Al-Hajjiya thinks.
He also believes that there are efforts to change the council's presidency to break the deadlock, but he said, "It is not known whether these efforts are serious or not."
"These diversities leave a negative impact on Diyala, given that the importance of the council among citizens is declining, at a time when political disagreements are affecting the conditions of the province because the implementation of projects is linked to consensus between the council and the government."
The first council session after the elections took place on February 5, but due to disputes among factions, it remained open until August 1 at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad. The election process for the speaker, deputy speaker, governor, and two deputies led to a boycott, and protester blocs returned to the council in September. However, the election of administrative unit heads and the recent removal of the council head reignited divisions within the council.
The Diyala Provincial Council consists of 15 seats, four of which are allocated to women. Diyala province is home to 1.6 million people, with 90,000 living in the predominantly Kurdish district of Khanaqin, according to estimates by the Central Bureau of Statistics for 2019.
Diyala province consists of six districts and 15 sub-districts, including various disputed areas under Article 140 of the Iraqi constitution, such as Khanaqin district.
