KDP’s cheap politics will not prevail

By Mufid Abdulla:

Masud Barzani

For those who prefer a new, cheap-speaking brand of leader who promises something and does the opposite, look no further than Masud Barzani, the illegal president of Kurdistan who promised major reforms when he returned from Italy in 2011 and, just a few weeks ago, clearly indicated that he wanted a presidential election to be held. The attempt by his Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) MPs to take politics out of the Kurdistan parliament represents a new low for the party that will further damage its image.

Parliamentarians from all the opposition parties have denounced the action of the two ruling parties in passing papers to extend the period of Barzani’s presidential rule without proper discussion. The KDP’s and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan’s (PUK) act on 30th June has damaged the reputation of the Kurdistan parliament and told the people that parliament is the house of the two party’s politburos and nothing more. Both ruling parties have done grave harm.

The argument against Masud Barzani as dictator is stronger than ever before, and the three opposition parties are winning this argument. The KDP cannot justify its political robbery of the hopes and aspirations of millions of people in the south of Kurdistan who are striving to reach the corridors of civilization and the modern world. The peoples’ trust in the two ruling parties is severely dented.

Our people need a better class of politician. What happened on Sunday is proof that very few KDP and PUK MPs have any sense of moral responsibility towards their nation.

A few weeks ago the ex-leader of the Kurdish Islamic Union (KIU) told Awene that: “Masud Barzani has done nothing during his term of office and it has been worst time for Kurdish politics”. The KDP did not officially respond, but a cousin of Masud Barzani, former head of the Kurdish Hezbollah party Adham Barzani, responded in a crude way by saying: “You are a spy and traitor”. Many observers realised that the KDP lacked the logic to reply to Salahadin Bahadin’s argument, and could only respond in this uncivilised manner.

Today, to me, the KDP and its leadership comprises desperate individuals acting as though they have no hope of winning the support of a majority of the people. The KDP is not a party for delivering prosperity and progressive change in Kurdistan but instead it is always a source of calamity and embarrassment inside and outside Kurdistan.

What the KDP did on 30 June 2013 is totally equal to the humiliation and damage that occurred on 31 August 1996 when it allied itself with Sadddam’s forces to control Erbil. The KDP’s cheap politics will not prevail since only the quality of real debate can enable you to win the hearts and minds of the people of Kurdistan.