KABUL - In a meeting with the heads of the various parliamentary commissions on Thursday, President Ashraf Ghani reportedly confirmed his intent to extend the term length of the current Parliament in order to avoid a power vacuum from emerging in the absence of a new round of parliamentary elections.
Chairman of the Legal and Judicial Commission Mohammad Abdoh said Ghani indicated Parliament would still have the authority to monitor government activities, approve laws and the national budget, if indeed its term is extended beyond June 22. "In the meeting, the president made it clear that he was strongly in support of Parliament continuing its job, because the absence of Parliament could pose harm to democracy and differentiation of power," Abdoh told TOLOnews on Thursday.
Meanwhile, presidential spokesman Sayed Zafar Hashemi has said Ghani will announce his final decision regarding the fate of Parliament within a few days. "The president is already involved in a series of consultations and discussions and he will announce his decision about the extension of Parliament's job and the implementation of reforms in the electoral system," Hashemi said.
The controversy around the term limit of Parliament emerged gradually over the past couple of months as it became clear that the national unity government would not implement electoral reforms in enough time for parliamentary elections to be held according to schedule. Delaying those elections, in turn, has forced the government to extend the terms of current representatives.
Some Afghan law experts and election monitoring institutions have raised questions about the legal grounds on which Ghani is making his executive decision to extend the term of Parliament beyond what is mandated in the Afghan Constitution. Nevertheless, it is clear that if the term is extended, the legislature will have to enjoy all the authorities it does under normal conditions in order to be fully legitimized.
"While there is no legal justification for the continuation of Parliament's term, if its tenure is extended, the authorities will not be negated," law expert Nasrullah Stanikzai said.
The head of electoral watchdog Afghanistan Democracy Watch, Zekirya Barakzai, urged national unity government leaders to announce the schedule for electoral reform and parliamentary elections as soon as possible. Based on consultations with legal experts and various stakeholders, the presidential palace is said to have concluded that the only way to extend the term of Parliament credibly would be to announce a timeline for elections.
"In the current situation, the credibility of Parliament, electoral reforms and the schedule for parliamentary elections are all interrelated, so national unity government leaders must consider all points," Barakzai told TOLOnews.
A few weeks ago, Senate Chairman Fazl Hadi Muslimyar asserted the extension of Parliament's term would be against the Afghan Constitution. However, in response, legal experts have said that if the Lower House looses its authorities, so too does the Senate. "The predicament is the National Assembly consists of two houses; if the term of the lower house expires, then the Senate's term will also automatically come to an end," legal expert Nasrullah Stanikzai said.
Among the most pressing of agenda items facing the current Parliament are the following: approval of important legislation including the national budget, providing checks and balance to the government, voting for nominees for the Ministry of Defense (MoD), Supreme Court and constitutional monitoring commission. In addition, lawmakers must vote for a new head of the Afghan Central Bank and Red Crescent Society. (Tolonews)