PM:05:34:04/08/2021
5884 View
+
-
SULAIMANI — Two days after renewed action in the power
struggle within the party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Politburo met
on Wednesday (August 4) for discussions about how to resolve its profound
internal problems.
The meeting was chaired by PUK Co-President Bafel Talabani,
but a number of key players were absent. His counterpart and rival, Lahur
Sheikh Jangi, was not present, nor were his allies on the Politburo.
It was the first such meeting since July 8, when Talabani
and his younger brother, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Deputy Prime
Minister Qubad Talabani, began a campaign to oust Sheikh Jangi and his camp
from positions of power within the fractious party.
In subsequent days, several people close to Sheikh Jangi were removed from
important positions within the PUK-affiliated security forces and replaced with Talabani loyalists. A media
outlet that supported him was raided.
The push seemed to work, with Sheikh Jangi announcing on
July 19 that he would temporarily relinquish his powers as co-president pending a restructuring of the leadership.
But on Monday, Sheikh Jangi declared in a statement that he
would instead seek to resolve the power struggle in court, citing the party’s inability
to conduct an investigation into accusations made against him in the course of
the attempt to remove him.
He also alleged that the Talabanis had attempted to force him to
leave the Kurdistan Region, which he said he refused to do.
While court action is unlikely, the statement signaled Sheikh Jangi's intention to resist his ouster.
On Wednesday, the Politburo said in a statement that a major
topic of discussion was how to maintain security and peace in the Kurdistan
Region and Sulaimani.
It also discussed ways to harness the material and spiritual
potential of party ahead of Iraq’s parliamentary elections in October.
The PUK is running on a joint list with the Change Movement
(Gorran). Sheikh Jangi had been the chair of the list, but he was replaced by
Qubad Talabani following his July 19 statement.
(NRT Digital Media)