Sadrist Ministers Quit
Political followers of Moktada al-Sadr, the Shiite cleric, said today that their six cabinet ministers would quit their posts in government in protest at the refusal of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to set a timetable for American troops to withdraw from Iraq.At a press conference, legislators loyal to Mr. Sadr read from a statement that they said they had received from Mr. Sadr ordering the withdrawal from the cabinet.
Mr. Sadr has issued threats to pull out of the government several times before but has not carried through on them until now. The lawmakers said they would not replace the ministers with their own members but wanted Mr. Maliki to make new independent and technocratic appointments.
It is not immediately clear what the effect of the move could be. But the withdrawal could seriously undermine Mr. Maliki’s already shaky administration.
This is an interesting development, and I am not sure what to make of it. Sadr’s star has seemed to have dimmed in recent months, and this is probably a bid to reclaim popularity. Given that it seems to be a trade though between real power and increased image, it can be taken as a sign of desperation on his part.
On the other hand though, it may represent some real issues for Maliki’s government, which of course is not a good thing.
We will probably have to wait a while to see what the effect of this really is.
