BAGHDAD, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi outgoing Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Thursday that he will not hold onto the post of prime minister for a second term.
"We do not cling to power, but we abide by the constitutional procedures," Abadi said at a press conference after a cabinet meeting, adding that the decision was made after what he has seen "from the political conflict over this post."
Meanwhile, Abadi expressed his respect for "the directives of the Supreme Religious Marjiyah," the Shiite religious authority headed by the spiritual Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
Earlier reports said Marjiyah does not support the Iraqi prime ministers in the past years.
The outgoing Iraqi prime minister also called on political blocs to speed up their nomination of the three leadership posts of parliament speaker, president and prime minister.
"We do not accept the continuation of political differences, as they can be exploited by terrorism, leading to criminal actions that would disrupt security and stability in the country," Abadi said.
The political blocs in parliament have yet to end their tough negotiations over forming the largest alliance to establish the government for the next four years, as both the Alliance Toward Reforms, backed by Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and Abadi, and the Conquest Alliance, headed by paramilitary Hashd Shaabi leader Hadi al-Ameri and Nuri al-Maliki, claim to be the largest alliance in parliament.
Mohammed Zayni, the eldest member of parliament who temporarily chairs the newly elected parliament, decided to resume the parliament session on Sept. 15 to elect a new speaker and two of his deputies.
According to the Iraqi constitution, after electing speaker and two deputies, the parliament should elect a president of the country who will ask the largest alliance to form a government within 30 days.
