Region | Iraq
Popular leader falls victim to power
Iraqis seeking to punish religious parties for bad governance gave a veteran administrator the most votes in a January election in Karbala province.
- AP
- Published: 23:05 March 15, 2009
- Al Haboubi's impressive finish in January 31 provincial elections has been noticed across Iraq, but especially in his native Karbala, a Shiite city 80 kilometres south of Baghdad.
- Image Credit: EPA
Karbala, Iraq: Iraqis seeking to punish religious parties for bad governance gave a veteran administrator the most votes in a January election in Karbala province.
But Yousuf Al Haboubi won't become governor because of a political manoeuvre that shows power and money - rather than popular will - carry the day in Iraqi politics.
Al Haboubi's impressive finish in January 31 provincial elections has been noticed across Iraq, but especially in his native Karbala, a Shiite city 80 kilometres south of Baghdad.
Hundreds of his supporters rallied on Saturday in Karbala's ancient quarter to demand that he be named governor. But that won't happen.
"In retrospect, yes, it was a mistake for me to run solo. But I did not want to belong to a specific party or bloc," the unassuming Al Haboubi said in an interview on Saturday at his Karbala home.
Still, many in Karbala and elsewhere believe he has a moral right to the governor's job.
Banners proclaimed "No, no to dominating parties" and "Al Haboubi for governor."
"We've had nothing but words from the local government over the past five years," protester Abdul Khaliq Mukhtar said.
Al Haboubi, a diminutive 61-year-old father of two, did not take part in Saturday's demonstration. But he insisted that he was the popular choice for governor.
"It's the will of the voters," Al Haboubi said.
Al Haboubi's opponents say he has no right to the post under election rules, which were published well ahead of the election.
"Al Haboubi represents only himself," said Abbas Hemeid, an ally of Al Maliki who won a seat on the Karbala council and is expected to become the province's deputy governor.
"This is real democracy, not Saddam Hussain's version of democracy."
That alluded to Al Haboubi's membership of the late Iraqi leader's Baath Party. The much heralded January vote for ruling local councils was supposed to restore a Sunni voice in much of the country's provincial administrations that was lost because of a Sunni Arab boycott in the last vote in 2005 and the tenuous security situation at the time.
But while it produced a backlash against religious parties for their perceived failings, it showed once again that money and power could be a substitute for a less than impressive showing at the ballot box or a poor track record in governance.
Smaller groups hope the prime minister will reward them with patronage or jobs at the federal government.
They say his record surpasses that of the city's current administration which they allege has done little to improve main services like power and water supply. The current administration is dominated by Al Maliki's Dawa party.
"People in Karbala had their say," said Kazim Al Muqdadi, a political scientist from Baghdad University.
"It is the legal right of the big parties to take all the top jobs, but it's a huge mistake to shut him out and stand against the wish of so many voters."
Another analyst, Dubai-based Mustafa Al Ani, said that after years of negligence and incompetence by local governments backed by religious parties in Iraq's south, giving Al Haboubi the chance to run Karbala could pose a risk to them.
"If he does well, and his track record says he will, that will undermine their credibility," he said.
Elections: Power politicsAl Haboubi ran as a single candidate rather than on a party ticket with multiple candidates. Under election rules that favour the big established parties, Al Haboubi will claim only one seat on the 27-member council. Parties that won fewer votes, including a coalition backed by Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki, a Karbala native, are expected to join forces to gain a majority on the provincial council. That will give them the power to select the governor.
The outcome of the Karbala vote is significant because the city is home to two holy shrines, a fact that makes it one of Iraq's wealthiest because of the tens of millions of dollars spent by visitors every year.
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