Iraqi President Rejects Nominee for PM, Submits Resignation

By Staff, Agencies

Iraqi President Barham Salih submitted resignation to parliament after refusing to designate the nominee for premiership, Assad al-Eidani, arguing that he would rather step down than appoint the position to a figure strongly rejected by protesters.

Salih handed his resignation to the Council of Representatives of Iraq on Thursday. He considered that since the constitution of the Arab country did not give him the right to reject a nomination, he would rather resign than pick a new premier rejected by demonstrators.

“I apologize for nominating Assad al-Eidani for the role of prime minister,” he wrote in his letter to parliament, adding, “I prefer to resign than to nominate another candidate and this is for the interest of the public.”

“It is better for me to resign rather than to assign an individual that is objected by the protesters to form a government,” he added.

The Iraqi lawmakers will now have to meet to discuss Salih’s resignation and vote on it. If they endorse his move, the veteran politician will step down. 

The development came just a day after parliament’s Binaa bloc nominated 59-year-old al-Eidani, the governor of Basra and a former minister of youth and sports, for the role of prime minister.