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1631I-HQ-1462938 it into his own hands. AZIZ stated that between 1979 and 1981, HUSSEIN took other, less dramatic steps to consolidate governmental power into his own hands. For exampole, until 1979, the RCC held regular meetings and recorded the minutes of those meetings. However, after HUSSEIN became President, meetings were less frequent and were not formally recorded. HUSSEIN told the RCC there would be times when he would not be able to consult with them and therefore, the RCC had to give him power to make unilateral decisions, which it did. [TARIO AZIZ January 30, 2004 interview]. HAMED YOUSEF AL-HUMMADI (hereinafter AL-HUMMADT) , HUSSEIN's Presidential Secretary, stated that he was responsible for assembling and presenting all reports and letters to HUSSEIN, and for preparing and disseminating all reports, letters and orders drafted by HUSSEIN. AL-HUMMADI's role as Presidential Secretary was purely administrative and AL-HUMMADI held no authority whatsoever. Similarly, the Presidential Diwan performed the same role for the RCC Secretary; that is, the Presidential Diwan facilitated correspondence to and from the RCC and was purely administrative in role and was without authority. [AL-HUMMADI interview June 2, 2004] AHMED HUSSEIN KHUDAIYER (hereinafter KHUDAIYER), the Presidential Diwan, stated that as the Secretary of the RCC, the Diwan issued all finalized RCC decisions. KHUDATYER stated that most Iraqis who read the RCC decisions assumed that they were promulgated after debate and consultation which simply was not true. The RCC rarely met as a governing body. Rather, HUSSEIN, the Head of State and therefore the Head of the RCC, assigned all decisions as a function of his own determination; that is, HUSSEIN made nearly all RCC decisions unilaterally without RCC input or debate. If meetings occurred at all, only HUSSEIN's closest two or three advisors would have been involved. KHUDAIYER generally learned of the RCC's "decisions" via a telephone from SADDAM HUSSEIN or from Presidential Secretary ABID HAMID MAHMUD AL-TIKRITI. KHUDAIYER forwarded HUSSEIN/RCC's instructions to his legal section which prepared the ordered document. KHUDAIYER reviewed the document, inspecting it for typographical errors and formatting, and editing as needed. [KHUDAIYER interview, June 12, 2004] In early 1987, MOHAMMAD HAMZA AL-ZUBAYDI (hereinafter