Iraq’s Shiite urges voters not to re-elect ‘corrupt’ MPs

KARBALA, May 04 (AFP): Iraq's highest Shiite authority, whose opinions carry great weight in the country, on Friday urged voters not to re-elect "corrupt" MPs during next week's national elections.

Abdel Mehdi al-Karbalai, the representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, issued the call during weekly Friday prayers in the holy city of Karbala.

He said Iraqis who will vote in the May 12 polls should not re-elect candidates from among MPs and officials who have already held government jobs and proved to be "corrupt and failing".

Iraq is ranked the 12th most corrupt country in the world by Transparency International. More than 24 million Iraqis are registered to elect 320 deputies from a field of around 7,000 candidates on May 12, with 71 seats reserved for the capital.

According to the electoral commission, only 20 percent of the candidates are newcomers.