UN welcomes Iraq’s election of new parliament speaker
UNAMI headquarters
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Iraq Ján Kubiš welcomed on Sunday the Iraqi parliament’s election of its speaker and his two deputies.
In a statement published on the website of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), Kubiš congratulated the elected officials, Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi and deputies Hassan al-Kaabi and Basheer al-Haddad, and expressed his eagerness to work with the new parliamentary leadership and to offer any required assistance.
“The Special representative appreciates the perseverance of the interim Speaker who chaired the session and applauds the sense of responsibility that motivated the candidates to compete for the leadership positions in the Council of Representatives,” the statement read.
However, Kubiš expressed his deep disappointment that none of the eminently qualified women managed to serve as parliament speaker in Iraq so far and urged the MPs and political leaders to elect women in other leadership positions in the parliament.
“The Special Representative urges the political forces and blocs to expeditiously proceed, in adherence to the constitutional timelines, with the process of electing the President of the Republic then the Prime Minister, to be followed by the formation of a pro-reform, non-sectarian patriotic national government that will be based on partnership cooperation of diverse components and groups of Iraq, away from the sectarian quotas and corruption,” the statement added.