A new attempt to amend the constitution will not be complete without a political agreement

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[size=52]A new attempt to amend the constitution will not be complete without a political agreement[/size]

[size=45]Baghdad / Tamim Al-Hassan[/size]
[size=45]It is likely that the political forces will soon start forming committees for a new study to amend the constitution, presented this time by the government. According to what is being circulated, the new amendments will include articles that caused what was known as the “political deadlock” after the recent legislative elections.[/size]
[size=45]The most prominent articles will be those related to the winning bloc, the election of the prime minister, and others to local governments.[/size]
[size=45]A few days ago, the Prime Minister's Advisor for Constitutional Affairs, Hassan al-Yasiri, presented to the President of the Republic the draft of Prime Minister Muhammad Shia' al-Sudani to amend the constitution.[/size]
[size=45]The media office of the President of the Republic said last week that the latter: “received the Prime Minister’s advisor for constitutional affairs, Hassan al-Yasiri, and during the meeting, al-Yasiri presented the prime minister’s draft to amend the constitution to the president in order to coordinate and cooperate between the two presidencies to adopt the project.”[/size]
[size=45]Less than a month has passed since Al-Yasiri was appointed to a mission that some consider “impossible”, which is to amend the constitution.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Sudani’s office announced at the end of last month that Hassan Nima al-Yasiri was assigned as his advisor on constitutional affairs. Between 2015 and 2018, he assumed the presidency of the Public Integrity Commission, but he resigned from it due to difficulties that he confirmed stood in the way of carrying out his mission.[/size]
[size=45]Regarding the mission of the new advisor, Al-Sudani’s media office indicated in a statement that “Al-Yasiri will start his work duties by holding meetings and discussions with representatives of the executive and legislative presidencies, as well as deliberating with the judiciary in order to draw features of a road map to make the required constitutional amendments.”[/size]
[size=45]He explained that this step comes as “a commitment from the government to implement some of the contents of the ministerial platform that was approved by Parliament on October 27, 2022, and pursuant to the agreement of the political blocs on the need to make constitutional amendments to be agreed upon, and to avoid recurring political deadlocks that occurred in different stages, especially in the period Last".[/size]
[size=45]In the context of the leaks about the new amendment, an informed political source told (Al-Mada) that “the amendment will not take place in any way before there is a political agreement.”[/size]
[size=45]The source, who asked not to be named, indicates that: “This matter may turn into an impossible task due to the multiplicity of positions and opinions of political forces.”[/size]
[size=45]And he adds, “The election law or less sensitive laws do not pass in parliament without a political agreement, so how can an amendment to the constitution pass without an agreement?”[/size]
[size=45]And the most prominent articles that may be amended are Article 76 related to the bloc that forms the government and the mechanisms for assigning the prime minister.[/size]
[size=45]This article was behind the disruption of the formation of the last government for about a full year. After that, it was held by interpretations of the Federal Court, most notably the two-thirds quorum of Parliament to choose the President of the Republic, who then formed what was known as the “blocking third.”[/size]
[size=45]Article (76) of the Constitution states:[/size]
[size=45]First: The President of the Republic assigns the candidate of the largest parliamentary bloc to form the Council of Ministers, within fifteen days from the date of the election of the President of the Republic.[/size]
[size=45]Second: The Prime Minister-designate shall name the members of his cabinet, within a maximum period of thirty days from the date of assignment.[/size]
[size=45]Third: The President of the Republic assigns a new candidate to head the Council of Ministers, within fifteen days, when the designated Prime Minister fails to form the cabinet within the period stipulated in item “Second” of this article.[/size]
[size=45]Fourth: The prime minister-designate presents the names of his cabinet members and the ministerial platform to the House of Representatives, and he is considered to have its confidence when the ministers are approved individually and the ministerial platform by an absolute majority.[/size]
[size=45]Fifth: The President of the Republic shall assign another candidate to form the cabinet within fifteen days, in case the ministry does not gain confidence.[/size]
[size=45]The head of the Judicial Council, Faeq Zaidan, had previously demanded that this article be amended during the suffocating political crisis that preceded the formation of the Sudanese government.[/size]
[size=45]In one of the interviews with the head of the Judicial Council last year, he said that there are two hypotheses for amending the constitution. The first is that the amendment be “on non-controversial constitutional articles, so that the amendment proceeds easily.”[/size]
[size=45]The second, he said, is the most difficult and will make it difficult to pass the amendment because: “The blocs will include other articles that are controversial, especially with regard to the rights of the region, oil and gas, and others, and as a result, the process of amending the constitution will be disrupted.”[/size]
[size=45]The Presidency of the Republic, against the backdrop of October demands, tried two years ago to amend the constitution, but in the end it did not succeed.[/size]
[size=45]Regarding the new amendment, Aref Al-Hamami, a member of the Legal Committee in the House of Representatives, said: “So far, we have not received any proposals from the government or the presidency regarding amendments to the constitution.”[/size]
[size=45]He added in an interview with (Al-Mada): “Amending the constitution will go through three stages, first the amendments, then the formation of political forces committees for negotiation and discussions, and finally the referendum.”[/size]
[size=45]The constitution outlined an amendment method in two articles, the first in Article 126, which states:[/size]
[size=45]First: The President of the Republic and the Council of Ministers collectively, or one-fifth (1/5) of the members of the House of Representatives, may propose amending the constitution.[/size]
[size=45]Second: The basic principles contained in Part One and the rights and freedoms contained in Part Two of the Constitution may not be amended except after two successive elections, and based on the approval of two-thirds of the members of the House of Representatives, the approval of the people in a general referendum, and the endorsement of the President of the Republic within seven days.[/size]
[size=45]Third: Other articles not stipulated in Clause (Second) of this Article may not be amended except after the approval of two-thirds of the members of the House of Representatives, the approval of the people in a general referendum, and the approval of the President of the Republic within seven days.[/size]
[size=45]Fourth: It is not permissible to make any amendment to the articles of the constitution that would detract from the powers of the regions that do not fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal authorities, except with the approval of the legislative authority in the concerned region and the approval of the majority of its population in a general referendum.[/size]
[size=45]And the second article is 142, which states:[/size]
[size=45]First: - At the beginning of its work, the Council of Representatives shall form a committee from among its members to be representative of the main components of Iraqi society. Its task is to submit a report to the Council of Representatives, within a period not exceeding four months, that includes a recommendation for the necessary amendments that can be made to the constitution. The committee shall be dissolved after deciding on its proposals.[/size]
[size=45]Second: The amendments proposed by the committee shall be presented in one batch to the Council of Representatives for a vote on, and it shall be deemed approved with the approval of the absolute majority of the number of the members of the Council.[/size]
[size=45]Third: The amended articles shall be presented by the House of Representatives, according to what is stated in Clause (Second) of this article, to the people for a referendum on them within a period not exceeding two months from the date of approval of the amendment in the House of Representatives.[/size]
[size=45]Fourth: The referendum on the amended articles will be successful with the approval of the majority of the voters, and if it is not rejected by two-thirds of the voters in three or more governorates.[/size]
[size=45]Fifth: The provisions of Article (126) related to amending the Constitution are excluded from the provisions of this article, until the completion of a decision on the amendments stipulated in this article.[/size]
[size=45]Representative Muhammad Anouz, a member of the Legal Committee, previously suggested in an interview with (Al-Mada) that the constitution be amended so as to reduce the members of Parliament, and to make the election of the governor directly from the voters and not through the provincial councils.[/size]
[size=45]These proposals had been put forward in previous committees formed by Parliament, as Adel al-Lami, a member of the Constitution Amendment Committee in the previous presidency, says that they submitted amendments to “70% of the constitution.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Lami added in an interview with (Al-Mada) that “Article 76 suggested that the winning bloc in the elections be the one that forms the government and presents its candidate. If he fails in his mission within 30 days, he will be replaced by the same bloc.[/size]
[size=45]On the status of Parliament, a member of the former Constitution Amendment Committee said: “We suggested that powers be given to the Prime Minister and the Republic to dissolve Parliament without returning to the parliament in the event that the House of Representatives persists in its work.”[/size]
[size=45]The last committee included 25 people, with the assistance of the United Nations, international experts, and local and international civil society organizations, in addition to another committee in the Prime Minister’s Council of Advisors, which Al-Lami said was “not completed, and some of its members were not competent.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Lami said, "I feel that what we are doing was not feasible and will not be completed. This has already happened, and the constitution has not been amended yet."[/size]
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