|
leftmenu2
|
|
NEWS RELEASE
Coalition Provisional Authority
http://www.iraqcoalition.org
Contact: Joseph Frazier
+1-914-360-4155
frazierj@orha.centcom.mil
May 3, 2004
Provincial Council Selects Future Governor of Baghdad
Baghdad – The Baghdad Provincial Council gathered last Thursday for a special
plenary meeting to select its preference for Baghdad’s Governor, Mr. Louai Hatim
Sultan Al-Aris. The meeting took place in downtown Baghdad, at City Hall known
as “Amanat Baghdad,” in Russafa District.
Six candidates vied for the position of Baghdad’s first democratically selected
Governor. Each candidate was given 20 minutes to present his qualifications to
the council and to answer questions from the council members. Forty-six members
of the Baghdad Provincial Council, representing all of Baghdad’s municipal and
suburban districts, were authorized to vote.
During the first round of voting, the council chose to eliminate three of the
candidates. After the second round, Mr. Louai Hatim Sultan Al-Aris prevailed in
the process. Mr. Sami Jassim Al-Askari placed 2nd, and Dr. Salam Zukum Ali
Fadhily came in 3rd.
The Governor of Baghdad is responsible for coordinating the work of all
government ministries within the province. He works closely with the provincial
council, with the Mayor of Baghdad, and with the Chief Executives in each of the
six Qadas outside the city.
The council’s selection awaits Ambassador Paul Bremer’s confirmation.
Those in attendance included CPA observers, as well as those persons interested
in observing the democratic process, and reporters representing Iraqi and
international media outlets.
The Provincial Council Selection Committee initially received 60 applications
for the position of Governor in response to a highly publicized advertisement
campaign in local Baghdad newspapers and other media outlets. From that group of
highly qualified applicants, twelve were deemed to have fully satisfied the
advertised criteria and ten were interviewed. As a final exercise, the Selection
Committee vetted the number of applicants to six, and submitted their names to
the full council for consideration.
The exceptionally well-qualified finalists included five with engineering
degrees, and one with a substantive finance and accounting background. They
were, (listed in alphabetical order): Mr. Sami Jassim Al-Askari (2nd), Dr. Salam
Zukum Ali Fadhily (3rd), Mr. Ali Radhi Al-Haydari, Dr. Ghazi Radhie Al-Abodie,
Mr. Kamel Khudyer Abbas Al-Murshidy and Mr. Louai Hatim Sultan Al-Aris (1st).
|
