Massoud Barzani and his relatives allegedly control a large number of commercial enterprises in Kurdistan-Iraq, with a gross value of several billion US dollars. The family is routinely accused of corruption and nepotism by Kurdish media as well as international observers.
Ekurd.net April 11, 2013
SLÊMANÎ, Kurdistan region ‘Iraq’,— Kurdish opposition parties rejected granting an extension or a third term to Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani, calling to 
respect the law that limits the term in two periods.
In breaking news by the opposition sites, the three main Kurdish opposition forces (Change Movement-Gorran, Islamic Federation and the Islamic Group) decided today to respect the dating of the elections and conducting provincial elections which were not implemented for the last eight years.
The opposition called for the implementation of “political reforms and not neglecting parliamentary reform resolutions, which are “the basic demands of the Kurdish people in the region”.
The opposition parties met in Slêmanî (Sulaimaniyah) to reply for the call of the two main Kurdish parties for the extension or renewing the presidency term of Barzani.
Last month the presidency of the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan announced that the President,www.ekurd.net Massoud Barzani did not ask to extend the mandate of his term.
Omêd Sabah, a spokesman for the Presidency of Kurdistan said in a statement “(NRT) independent Kurdish TV satellite channel broadcasted a news bulletins on Saturday evening 30/3/2013 stated that the President of Kurdistan region, Massoud Barzani asked to extend his mandate”.
In a letter to Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), Massoud Barzani has conveyed the Kurdistan Region Presidency’s decision that presidential and parliamentary elections in the Kurdistan Region must be held before September 8th, 2013. The Region’s last presidential and parliamentary elections were held in the July of 2009.
A joint meeting held on last Sunday, 7 April, between members of the political offices of Talabani’s Patriotic Union of Kurdistan PUK and Barzani’s Kurdistan Democratic Party KDP at the headquarters of the political bureau of the PUK in Sulaimaniyah. After the meeting, the two sides have visited the headquarters of main Kurdish opposition party the (change) movement to meet with Nawshirwan Mustafa, leader of the movement.
Gorran is the strongest opposition movement in Iraqi Kurdistan with 25 seats in the 111-member parliament.
Gorran enjoys wide support in Kurdistan region. Gorran emerged in regional elections in 2009 as a rival to the two main ruling Kurdish parties and won 25 seats in the parliament. Gorran is challenging Talabani’s PUK (Patriotic Union of Kurdistan), and the KDP (Kurdistan Democratic Party), of regional president Massoud Barzani and accuses the parties of corruption. It’s headed by the former senior PUK-leader Nawshirwan Mustafa, who was Talabani’s deputy until 2007.
Massoud Barzani and his relatives allegedly control a large number of commercial enterprises in Kurdistan-Iraq, with a gross value of several billion US dollars. The family is routinely accused of corruption and nepotism by Kurdish media as well as international observers.
Since February 2011, till middle April 2011, thousands of protesters gathered daily in Sulaimaniyah and other parts of Kurdistan against corruption and the lording over Kurdistan region by two main parties KDP and PUK. Kurdish protestors demand the ouster of the local Kurdistan government KRG, calling for improving services and living conditions and fighting corruption.
Most of the demonstrators opposed Massoud Barzani, and the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party KDP. Ten people were killed and more than 700 others wounded and 220 more have been arrested in clashes between demonstrators and Kurdish security forces during a wave or protests that swept Sulaimaniyah. The Kurdish security forces (Asayish) arrested and tortured a lot of activists and journalists.
Sources: aswataliraq.info | krp.org | ninanews.com | Agencies