BAGHDAD, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's prominent Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr announced Thursday that he would not participate in the upcoming parliamentary elections due to the "persistent corruption" within the political process.
"As long as corruption endures, I will not participate in any flawed electoral process" that prioritizes sectarian and partisan interests but disregards people's suffering and regional disasters, al-Sadr was quoted in a statement by his office on Facebook.
The cleric also called on his supporters to neither vote nor run in the parliamentary elections.
Al-Sadr's Sadrist movement emerged as the biggest winner of the 2021 Iraqi parliamentary elections with 73 seats but failed to form a government.
In June 2022, al-Sadr ordered his followers to withdraw from the parliament amid the prolonged political deadlock, insisting on the parliament's dissolution and snap elections.
Iraq's parliamentary elections are scheduled to be held in October or November this year, according to local media. ■
