Baghdad: Legal expert and consultant, Salem Hawas stated today that the announcement by the Islamic Dawa Party regarding the nomination of Nouri al-Maliki for the position of Prime Minister remains an internal political step that carries no constitutional weight unless the process outlined in the constitution for appointing a prime minister is fully completed.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, Hawas said in a statement that the Iraqi Constitution, particularly Article 76, clearly defines the mechanism for assigning the Prime Minister, noting that the President of the Republic must task the nominee of the largest parliamentary bloc with forming the cabinet within fifteen days from the date of the president’s election.

He clarified that the largest bloc in parliament is the only body authorized to submit its nominee to the President of the Republic, stressing that any announcement issued by a political party ‘cannot be considered a constitutional assignment,’ but is merely an internal organizational step.

Hawas added that the nomination does not mean a final decision, as the process goes through several stages: identifying the largest bloc within parliament, formally submitting its candidate to the President, who then proceeds with the assignment according to constitutional procedures.

He further noted that the constitution does not prevent the nomination of any individual who meets the legal requirements for the post, but at the same time grants no preference to any party or political group outside the framework of its parliamentary representation.