We didn’t stick with Maliki. We abanadoned Maliki which is why he took matters into his own hands.
Same story with the current leader of Afghanistan (Karshi???)
"In short, Malikis one-man, one-Dawa-party Iraq looks a lot like Husseins one-man, one-Baath Party Iraq. But at least Hussein helped contain a strategic American enemy: Iran. And Washington didnt spend $1 trillion propping him up. There is not much democracy left if one man and one party with close links to Iran control the judiciary, police, army, intelligence services, oil revenue, treasury and the central bank. Under these circumstances, renewed ethno-sectarian civil war in Iraq was not a possibility. It was a certainty."