ERBIL — The leader of the Sovereignty Alliance in Kirkuk has stated at a news conference that Kirkuk is a diverse city where everyone should participate in the formation of the local government. He has accused the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) of disrupting negotiations and making unilateral decisions in the province.

Khalid Mafraji, the head of the Arab-led Sovereignty Alliance in Kirkuk province, mentioned that their alliance had formed a bloc with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Turkmen, as well as other parties, to secure a majority in the council.

"However, because the PUK was not with us, we did not meet in the past few days and postponed the meeting at the request of the Iraqi Prime Minister," he stated.

"We have not severed ties with any party in the negotiations. We held talks with the PUK, and they demanded the governor's post. The KDP and the Turkmen also sought the post," Mafraji noted.

Furthermore, Khalid Mafraji explained that they won a majority in the council and planned to meet, but then the PUK refused to participate on the grounds that the meeting must be closed.

"Unfortunately, the PUK made a dictatorial decision and disrupted the negotiations. In the last few days, there was an agreement among the Arab leaders, and we decided to attend the meeting together," he said.

"Mohammed Hafez, who was a former leader of the Sovereignty Alliance, was removed from the council due to deviation and non-compliance," he added.

The PUK and several Arab members of the Kirkuk Provincial Council elected the governor and the speaker of the provincial council in Baghdad on Saturday night. Rebwar Taha, a Kurd from the PUK, was elected as the new Kirkuk governor, and Mohammed Hafez was elected as the speaker of the Kirkuk Provincial Council.

Before the meeting, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Turkmen Front, and Arab coalition factions in the Kirkuk Provincial Council refused to participate, calling it "illegal."

Meanwhile, the United Turkmen Front in Iraq (UTI) has stated that the meeting to elect the governor and speaker of the Kirkuk Provincial Council in Baghdad violates the law and agreements and will file a complaint in court to annul the decisions.

"What happened last night at the Rashid Hotel in Baghdad is a violation of the law," Hassan Turan, leader of the United Turkmen Front in Iraq, told a news conference.

"Our first comment is on the formation of the Kirkuk local administration outside the structure of the Kirkuk Provincial Coalition formed by the Sudanese Prime Minister," he added.

He also noted that the meeting contradicts Article 4, Paragraph 13 of the Provincial Council Election Law, which states that "the distribution of powers must be a fair representation to ensure the participation of the provincial communities, taking into account the election results."

"Although the meeting at the Rashid Hotel was held without the agreement of the communities in Baghdad and without the presence of the Turkmen community, this violates the text of the minutes of the first meeting of the Kirkuk Provincial Council on July 11," Turan explained.

"Therefore, the meeting to elect the governor and council speaker is a flagrant violation of the law. Everyone knows that the meeting was held without the knowledge and invitation of the Speaker of the Provincial Council. We will resort to the judiciary to annul any decisions made at the meeting at the Rashid Hotel," the Turkmen leader indicated.

He also criticized some political leaders, saying that they have turned Kirkuk into a bargaining chip for their own benefit, which has nothing to do with serving the people of Kirkuk. Voters do not recognize the election results and electoral balance. We have also filed a lawsuit in the Federal Court to re-audit the voter registry for the upcoming elections.

"Some believe that solving Kirkuk's problems involves merely distributing posts. However, the fundamental issues in Kirkuk require organizing and restoring trust between communities. We believe that what was done on Saturday night undermines that trust," he said.

"As Turkmens of Kirkuk, we are concerned about the peaceful coexistence of communities in Kirkuk and the restoration of trust between them. Six months ago, we submitted our proposal to the parties because the problems in Kirkuk have deep roots and involve economic, land, and joint administration issues that require the agreement of all communities."