He was a leading member of the Baath Party which was in power
His position in the army was important too
He became Deputy Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council where he built support
He became known as the strong man in the government
He was a wily politician and did not want to be identified as having presidential ambitions too soon; so, he moved cautiously and kept a good relationship with Bakr
But he was also ruthless and eliminated rivals; any who posed a threat
In 1964 Bakr appointed him to the Regional Command and he was put in charge of security and the Party’s military organisation
Civilian politicians and even high-ranking military personnel were accused of plots and conspiracies and executed
And he appointed people who supported him to the Revolutionary Command Council, building up a power base
He started by building up his support in rural areas by spending a lot of money in the countryside and by giving land to peasants
He also gained a lot of credit for using money from oil to build roads and raise education levels
He had improved the lives of ordinary people; and had shown he could deal with foreign issues
As President Bakr grew older he suffered from increasing health problems Saddam was ruler of Iraq in all but name
In 1979, Bakr was “encouraged” (i.e. bullied) to resign in favour of Saddam
Then, he called a meeting of leaders of the Ba’ath party and announced that 68 of them were traitors; he had them arrested and executed
And his government was dominated by Sunnis, and leading positions were held by members of his tribe as well as family members and friends