Head of the Sadrist movement, Moqtada al-Sadr, warned on Monday Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi that he alone will be held responsible if he should “submit” to the developments going on behind the scenes in the government formation process. He made his remarks on the eve of a parliament vote on the eight candidates proposed to fill the vacant defense and interior minister posts. Abdul Mahdi has been struggling to fill the remaining positions in his government, with political bickering hindering his efforts. Sadr, leader of the Sairoon bloc that was the victor in the May parliamentary elections, said in his message to the PM that he sought to contain political disputes over the cabinet formation by allying himself with Hadi al-Ameri. “Corrupt” powers, however, were lured away towards striking new sectarian alliances, he lamented. He reminded Abdul Mahdi that he was chosen as PM because he promoted himself as an independent figure and he should therefore “avoid yielding to the developments taking place behind the scenes.” He also urged him to complete his government with independent technocratic ministers and to submit the lineup as soon as possible and without disputed candidates. Security ministers must be chosen from among “brave leaders” who liberated Iraqi territory from the ISIS terrorist group, Sadr proposed. “They are most qualified for these posts,” he explained in clear rejection of the candidacy of Faleh al-Fayyad as interior minister. Parliament in October approved 14 out of 22 cabinet ministers.