Iraq’s former PM Nouri al-Maliki needs to realise time is up

On the surface, it might be said former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was politically as “stubborn as a mule.” It would seem he shares some qualities with a donkey.

Put a donkey and a mule on one side of a barrier with a gap. On the other are edibles. The donkey will pause at the barrier; the mule will go straight through the gap.

The Mail Online reported the findings by Dr Britta Osthaus, a lecturer on Applied Social Sciences at Canterbury University, Kent.

Al-Maliki was under criticism over time. They included divisive policies, cronyism, hogging power — interior, defence and intelligence portfolio — and a bride eye to corruption. A Shiite, he was accused of alienating minority Sunnis and Kurds.

In the end most Sunnis and Kurds simply hated him. He was abandoned not just by some supporters in his Shiite parliamentary Law of State Coalition, the Shiite most influential cleric, and worse, critical backers, Iran and the US.

Catastrophically, the jihadist bent on establishing an Islamic State of Iraq and Levant, ISIL, had seized western Iraq and declared a Caliphate, the Islamic State.

In June the IS seized several towns in north-western Iraq, and in lighting speed proceed southward to within a day’s drive to the capital, Baghdad.

They displaced at least 1.5 million people.

Al-Maliki’s troops, led by hand-picked and cowardly generals abandoned modern equipment and, figuratively, evaporated.

Had it not been for US air strikes against ISIL last week, the insurgents would be in Irbil, the capital of Kurdistan.

Ironically, Al-Maliki’s government had not only opposed US arming Kurdish forces, Peshmerga, but also any presence of US troops in Iraqi after official withdrawal in 2011.

FIG LEAF

Al-Maliki’s claim to be prime minister for a third four-year term — there’s no limit for the office holder’s terms — was that his coalition won a majority parliamentary seats in May elections.

When it became imminent President Fouad Massoum — since 2006 a Kurd has held the presidency — would nominate Deputy Parliament Speaker Haider al-Abadi, by tradition a Shiite and member of Al-Maliki coalition, as new prime minister with 30 days to form a new government, the incumbent stayed put and sent troops to Baghdad streets.

Luckily mid-last week someone or some people not only helped al-Maliki open eyes and see the “gap” but also gave him a fig leaf. In a televised speech, he withdrew his candidature, saving face with a statement he hoped that will help in the fight against the jihadists.

It was obvious as early January when the Jihadist took control of predominantly Sunni province of Anbar in western Iraq that al-Maliki had completely missed the “gap”— inclusiveness.

Al-Maliki compared his government’s armed force to regain control as sectarian conflict between “the followers of Hussein and the followers of Yazid.”

That’s a reference to a 7th Century defining battle of Karbala for Shiite. To the Sunnis, that statement could have only meant “We will crush you!”

After eight years in power, al-Maliki leaves plenty of destruction of the precious little he inherited from US occupation.

The least he can do, the mule way, is rally supporters behind al-Abadi and shut his mouth about centuries-old glories.

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