The discontent within Afghan people seems to be rising about the ongoing transition period and the prospects of peace and tranquility in the country. The people of Afghanistan, at the moment, does not seem to be in the position to have vivid clue about where the scenario is leading as there have been many ambiguities and secrets about the most important political issues. Apart from that, the incapacity of Afghan government to provide better political system and good governance has made Afghan people undergo distress and opposition groups think seriously about change in the political setup.
Afghan government instead of working for better governance and development of democracy has proved to be personality-centered; mostly revolving around the character and role of the President. The opposition groups in this regard have kept on showing their concerns about too much centralization of power and have recently gone to the extent of calling the current government as lacking credibility and political legitimacy.
Faizullah Zaki, the spokesperson for National Front of Afghanistan (ANF) has said, “The current stance of the Government on strategic partnership agreement with the US is more of a political bargaining for the interests of a circle in the Presidential Palace, who do not represent all the people of Afghanistan.” The Front has also mentioned that the current government does not have the right to sign the strategic partnership agreement with the US and the signing of the agreement must be postponed till the next elections.
It is really important to note that there are major deficiencies in the ongoing political setup of the country. The presidential form of government has proved too much centralized and has not been able to provide proper representation or participation to the heterogeneous people of Afghanistan. The political groups that have been denied participation are really worrying about their proper representation in the system and are suffocating in the ongoing scenario.
They have not only been denied their rightful participation but are also being kept aloof of important decisions about the country and its future. The most evident example in this regard is the ongoing peace talks with Taliban. The opposition groups have been denied any sort of participation in the process though they are the true anti-Taliban elements in the country and they will be the ones most affected regarding decision about Taliban’s return in Afghan political system. On the other hand they are also kept away of the strategic agreement with the US that is going to decide the future to a large extent.
In the democratic system of government the role of opposition is of a great importance. A wise and truly democratic government always lets the opposition participate within the affairs of the country and it, because of the healthy criticism of the opposition parties, can have an analysis of its policies and can make better decisions regarding the better future of the country. However, the opposition parties in our country are not allowed any sort of participation and they, because of the same fact, have started disbelieving in the current system and have the demands to change the setup to a parliamentary form wherein there is more room for them to participate for their rightful interests.
One of the most important demands of political thinking is to differentiate between the state and the government. The government keeps on changing and their policies can be altered but the state is permanent and its interests are vital. It is in the best interest of the state of Afghanistan that all the major ethnic and political groups of the country must be allowed proper participation in the affairs of the state.