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Shafaq News- Baghdad<\/p>\n
Iraq’s Federal Supreme Court registered on Tuesday the
\nfirst legal challenge to the constitutional validity of Ali al-Zaidi’s
\ndesignation as prime minister-designate.<\/p>\n
The case was filed by Raed al-Maliki, a former member
\nof parliament, acting in his capacity as a private citizen and independent
\npolitical figure.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit \u2014the first of its kind since President Nizar Amedi mandated al-Zaidi on April 27\u2014 rests on four grounds according to
\nal-Maliki: an alleged failure to meet candidacy requirements; a constitutional
\nand legal conflict of interest; a procedural defect in the nomination, on the
\ngrounds that al-Zaidi was put forward by a political alliance rather than a
\nparliamentary bloc and that the nomination bore the signatures of political
\nleaders rather than being submitted through the constitutionally prescribed
\nmechanism; and a contention that a candidacy disconnected from the popular will
\nrisks depressing voter participation and enabling foreign interference \u2014which
\nal-Maliki said had already occurred.<\/p>\n
Speaking outside the court, al-Maliki argued that the
\noffice of the prime minister demands the judgment of a statesman with a record
\nin political and administrative affairs. “The constitution requires
\npolitical experience, not connections,” he said.<\/p>\n
Al-Zaidi, a prominent Iraqi businessman, was tasked by
\nPresident Amedi with forming the new government following his nomination by the
\nCoordination Framework, the dominant Shiite political alliance in parliament,
\nas successor to outgoing Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.<\/p>\n
No hearing date has been announced by the court.<\/p>\n