The Secretary-General of the Iraqi National Congress, Aras Habib Kareem, said that the political class that has been ruling Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein “does not have, after 15 years of change, a clear vision in the political and economic fields.” Habib was the most prominent aide to the late Iraqi politician Ahmad Chalabi and his successor in the leadership of the Iraqi National Congress. He is running in the next parliamentary elections in an alliance with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. “We still do not have a monetary, financial or economic policy, while the development of any country depends on the existence of such key policies,” the politician said. Asked about his vision of the current Iraqi political scene in light of the ongoing preparations for the upcoming elections scheduled for May 12, Habib said: “The current political scene is linked to what can be achieved during the upcoming elections,” noting that the balances of power during the last three sessions were based on ethnic and sectarian dimensions, as “political blocs were built on that basis.” “Today, the situation is different,” Habib said, explaining that the size of blocks was not clear yet, so it would be impossible for any bloc to obtain 90 seats in Parliament, as it happened before. “The dissolution of the blocs that were based on ethnic and sectarian foundations reflected positively on the nature of the formation of lists that will run in the next elections, where almost every candidate is running individually and not on the bases of race and sect,” he stressed. As for his vision as a businessman for the future of the Iraqi economy, he said: “Working in the private sector in Iraq makes you look at many issues that will annoy you unless there is a real change in vision and plans.”