CF shortlists nine candidates for prime minister, Al-Hakim says

Shafaq News– Baghdad

The Coordination Framework (CF), a coalition of Iraq’s ruling Shiite political forces, has selected nine candidates for the post of prime minister, Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the Al-Hikma Movement (Wisdom), stated on Saturday.

Speaking at the Baghdad Diwan for Political and Social Elites, Al-Hakim said the CF’s management of the prime ministerial nomination process has received understanding at both regional and international levels.

Iraq’s political system allocates the premiership to a Shiite figure, the speakership to a Sunni, and the presidency to a Kurd. With major blocs holding sizable parliamentary seats, the selection of the three senior posts has become a process shaped by bargaining among political components.

The election of the speaker of parliament and his two deputies, held last December, Al-Hakim pointed out that the decision took place based on prior agreement and consultation among political forces.

Al-Hakim described Iraq as being in a clear state of recovery, citing the end of the missions of the US-led Coalition and the United Nations, as well as what he described as the success of the electoral process.

He reaffirmed the need to restrict weapons to state institutions, calling for a balanced Iraqi approach that takes previous circumstances into account.

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