As soon as the president of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, Massoud Barzani, announced last week that he was calling on the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) in Iraq to schedule a date for presidential and parliamentary elections in the Kurdistan Region not later than Sept. 8, the region has witnessed a spike in media disputes that have resembled the early stages of electoral campaigns.
Following Barzani’s announcement, the opposition media noted that this decision came as a result of pressure from opposition parties, alluding to the reluctance of the president to hold the elections on time. Displeased, the president responded, asking the opposition not to talk on behalf of the people of the Kurdistan region and to acknowledge its weight and position on the political map.
“We ask the opposition to be responsible, to acknowledge its weight and the fact that it represents the minority. It has absolutely no right to speak for the people of Kurdistan,” responded the presidency in a statement issued by Omed Sabah, the Kurdistan Regional Presidency spokesman.
The media disputes did not stop at this. Accusations of treason arose, when Adham Barzani, a key member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) led by his cousin [Massoud Barzani], accused the former secretary general of the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), Sheik Salah al-Din Muhammad Baha al-Din, of spying for another regional country. Baha al-Din, in his turn, announced that he would file a lawsuit against Barzani.
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