Extensive Reforms in Iraq with the Abolition of Certain Positions and Reduction of Security Personnel

On Sunday, August 18, the Iraqi government agreed to the proposed reforms by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi; these reforms include the abolition of the positions of vice presidents and deputy prime ministers and a reduction in the number of security personnel for all officials. According to Reuters, Saad al-Hadithi, the spokesperson for the Iraqi Prime Minister, announced that the Council of Ministers approved Mr. Abadi's proposed reforms to improve the country's financial situation and combat corruption. The implementation of these reforms also requires parliamentary approval. Abadi's action, announced through a statement on the Iraqi Prime Minister's website, came after several weeks of widespread protests in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, and southern cities. Protesters are demanding government reforms and a fight against corruption. These protests, one of the reasons for which is the long hours of power outages in the unprecedented heat of Iraq, could negatively affect mobilizing public opinion in favor of the fight against the group known as the Islamic State (ISIS). Militants from this Islamist group have seized vast areas in northern and western Iraq as well as parts of Syria. Abadi has called for an end to the division of government positions based on religious and party lines, the resumption of investigations into corruption cases, and an immediate reduction in the number of security personnel for all officials in the country. Accordingly, the personnel who become unemployed will be assigned to the Ministries of Defense and Interior to be trained for 'national defense.' The Prime Minister of Iraq has also called for the abolition of the positions of vice presidents and deputy prime ministers. In Iraq, the president has three deputies, two of whom are Shia and one Sunni. The Prime Minister also has three deputies, one of whom is Shia, one Sunni, and one Kurdish. In addition, Abadi has decided to cut exceptional bonuses given to the president, prime minister, speaker of parliament, delegations, and organizations of the country and their affiliates. Osama al-Nujaifi, the vice president of Iraq and former speaker of parliament, welcomed Abadi's reform decisions in a statement, emphasizing that 'in this crucial phase, following the people, implementing reforms, fighting corruption, and mobilizing national resources for the war against terrorism, symbolized now by ISIS, is very important.' Al-Nujaifi expressed support for the protesting demonstrators and called for solidarity to achieve the goals of the Iraqi people. He also held former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki responsible for the crisis in Iraq's security, political, and service situations and the suffering of the people of this country.