•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who is locked in a tight battle with his main rival to form Iraq's next government, called on Sunday for a recount of votes cast in the country's March 7 polls.

His demand was immediately slammed as a "clear threat" against the election commission by the Iraqiya bloc that is neck-and-neck with the incumbent's State of Law Alliance in the race to be the biggest grouping in parliament.

Results from the election, the second since Saddam Hussein was ousted in the US-led invasion of 2003, come less than six months before the United States is set to withdraw all of its combat troops from Iraq.

Latest figures from Iraq's election commission and based on 92 percent of ballots cast show State of Law trailing Iraqiya, led by secular ex-premier Iyad Allawi, by less than 8,000 votes nationwide.

"Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki calls for the high electoral commission to immediately answer the demands of political parties to proceed with a manual recount," a statement from Maliki's office said.

The statement added, noting that Maliki remained head of the country's armed forces, that he wanted a recount to "protect political stability, avoid a degradation of the security situation and prevent a return to violence."

It did not specify whether he wanted a nationwide recount, or only in particular provinces.

The statement differs markedly from Maliki's own comments just a week ago, when he said on television that election complaints were "very small" in nature and "cannot affect the results."

Hundreds of people demonstrated in the holy Shiite city of Najaf, south of Baghdad, on Sunday in support of the premier's demands.

Maliki's remarks were denounced by senior Iraqiya candidate Intisar Allawi, a relative of the bloc's leader, who said: "This is a clear threat against the commission that aims to put pressure on it, in order to carry out fraud in favour of the State of Law Alliance."

She added that Maliki's call for a manual recount was a "contradiction" that was fuelled by news that Iraqiya had taken the lead in the nationwide vote tally.

"While he says that the election is accurate, fair and transparent, when Iraqiya takes the lead, he accuses the commission," said Intisar Allawi, a relative of Iraqiya's leader.

She declined to say a manual recount was unnecessary but noted that this action "would mean a delay of the results for several months. This would lead to a political vacuum that would affect the security situation."

Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) has previously downplayed any allegations of fraud, and has pleaded for patience as the vote count, which has so far taken two weeks, continues.

"We have heard many calls for a recount but we have not received any official request," Saad Rawi, an IHEC official, told AFP. "When we receive an official request, we will discuss this within IHEC and with the UN."

Figures released on Saturday put Iraqiya ahead of State of Law by just 7,928 votes.

Overall, Iraqiya garnered 2,543,632 votes compared with State of Law's 2,535,704. The Iraqi National Alliance, a coalition led by Shiite religious groups, was in third place with 1,915,654.

The nationwide vote count is an indication of the tight race between the two main rivals, but it was not immediately clear how their tallies would affect the number of seats they win in parliament.

Iraq's proportional representation system makes it unlikely for any single group to clinch the 163 seats required to form a government on its own.

Complete election results are expected in the coming days. Final results -- after all complaints have been investigated and ruled upon -- are likely by the end of the month.

AFP