Middle East Online on 28 February 2010 reported that Ali al-Lami had stated that evidence supporting the decision of the Justice and Accountability Committee’s (JAC) to declare a number of candidates as being subject to the deBa’thification law, which in turn led them to be barred by the Independent High Electoral Commission from Iraq’s March 7 national election, will be released in the coming days.

Meanwhile Ahmed Chalabi was questioned on Inside Iraq on Al-Jazeera English.
He stated that the Justice and Accountability Committee had not needed Parliamentary approval of its members because all that Parliament had done under Law 10 of 2008 law was to change of name of the Committee (it was previously known as the Supreme National Deba’thification Commission) and alter its powers and it was not necessary to approve the Commissioners who continued in office. He stated that there was a decision of the Court of Cassation which supported this viewpoint.

Article 2 of Law No. 10 of 2008 states:
(1) The name “Supreme National Commission of Accountability and Justice”, being a commission with financial and administrative independence, shall hereby replace the name “Supreme National Commission of Debaathification”, provided that it will have the same constitutional powers and juridical personality as the latter. It will report to the Council of Representatives and resume its activities in coordination with the judicial authority and executive services.
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(4) The Commission shall consist of seven members at the grade of director general who have legal and political experience. The appointment of those members must observe the balance in the representation of all components of the Iraqi society. Those members shall be nominated by the Council of Ministers, approved by the Council of Representative in simple majority and ratified by the Presidency Council.
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In answer to a question as to why the JAC had taken its decision in relation to the Parliamentary candidates so close to the election date, he said that this was because the list of potential candidates for election had been drawn up and given to it only recently.
He said that IHEC had not been obliged to follow the JAC’s position but that it had chosen to do so.