ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kirkuk provincial council is set to convene an urgent meeting on Thursday, with the resignation of Governor Rebwar Taha and the election of a successor expected to top the agenda, according to officials and a document obtained by Rudaw.
A source within the council, speaking to Rudaw on the condition of anonymity, said Taha’s resignation is included in the session’s agenda, while Rudaw reporter in Kirkuk Hardi Mohammed said the governor is expected to step down during the meeting.
Mohammed also said a vote will be held to appoint Mohammed Saman, a member of the Iraqi Turkmen Front, as the new governor, marking a potential rotational leadership transition in the multi-ethnic and disputed province.
Taha, a Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) member of the council, was nominated for governor during a special council session held in Baghdad in early August 2024. His appointment marked the return of a Kurdish governor to Kirkuk for the first time since 2017.
The session was boycotted by representatives of the Iraqi Turkmen Front, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), and the Arab Alliance, all of whom argued that it violated legal procedures.
The meeting comes as Taha said on Tuesday that he has not been officially informed to step down amid reports claiming his party has agreed to hand over the post to a Turkmen candidate.
“We have not been told anything about this matter up to this moment. Like everyone else, I have only heard it in the media,” Taha told reporters. “Sometimes I even laugh and ask, ‘What is this?’ I have not been officially informed at all.”
Abdullah Mirways, a PUK member of the council, told Rudaw on Wednesday members were formally notified of the extraordinary session. “We were notified today by the head of the Kirkuk provincial council that an extraordinary meeting of the council will be held tomorrow at 12:00 pm,” he said.
The invitation emphasized the urgency of the meeting and cited the relevant legal framework, calling on the members "to attend an urgent meeting" on Thursday.
The anticipated changes come amid recent political negotiations inside the council. According to information obtained by Rudaw, the PUK has reached an agreement with Arab and Turkmen components. Under the reported arrangement, the PUK would relinquish the governorship in exchange for several key positions, including mayor of Kirkuk’s central district, mayor of Daquq district, the police directorate, and the post of deputy governor.
Nahro Mohammed contributed to this article from Erbil.