Kurdishaspect.com - By Baqi Barzani
Playing a key part in Iraqi politics and having been undertaking leadership of Kurdish nation for more than 5 decades, it is time for President Jalal Talabani to retire and concentrate on his deteriorating health situation.
Talabani, 77, founded a secret Kurdish student association at the age of 13. Since then, he has been actively involved in Kurdish national struggle.
President Talabani has undergone heart valve surgery in the past. He has been formerly hospitalized for extreme fatigue, knee pain and obesity complications. In 2007, he was admitted to King Hussein Medical Center in Amman, Jordan, and he has made repeated visits to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota for medical treatments and follow-ups.
Albeit he has expressed his full readiness to maintain his presidential post, it is first in his best interest as well as the Kurdish nation for him to abdicate and allot some times to his personal relaxation. He has always voiced interest in compiling his memories and holding a profession as a university professor where he could share his valuable past experiences with students.
Kurdish nation is in critical need of a dissimilar, vigorous leadership. Some one from the new generation of elites and intellectuals, a fitting candidate within the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) endorsed by the overwhelming majority or an independent Kurdish statesman from abroad.
