KABUL - As the calls for the implementation of key reforms in Afghanistan's electoral system increase, Mohammad Abdoh, head of parliament's legal and judicial commission, said Friday that lawmakers seem to be divided over whether to approve the decree or reject it.
He said that the views of 12 parliamentary commissions out of 15 commissions have been collected, but half of the commissions agree with the reform package and another half oppose it.
Meanwhile, a number of lawmakers have suggested government starts lobbying for the approval of the decree by the house in order to prevent the possible rejection of the decree by parliamentarians.
While government, the public, election monitoring institutions and the international community call for the approval of the decree for election reforms, the lawmakers however are split about the law.
"According to our information the views are 50-50 in a sense that 50 percent of the commissions have accepted the decree with amendments while another 50 percent have rejected the decree itself," Abdoh said.
Implementation of key reforms in Afghanistan's electoral system is an important exam to the national unity government. However, if the decree on the election reforms is rejected by parliament, this will increase challenges for government leadership.
"If we are about to reject the order, this would mean that the national assembly will have failed to demonstrate the determination of the people, secondly it would be a major failure for the government of national unity," said Mohammad Naeem Ayoubzada, head of Transparent Election Foundation of Afghanistan.
"Certain networks are operating from the presidential palace to parliament corridors to disrupt any possible decree expected to be issued from the ARG (presidential palace) so that they can slow down the pace of electoral reforms," a political analyst Asif Ashna said.
But, is there a way to prevent the disapproval of the decree by the House of Representatives?
"Our colleagues who have unanimity of views must work together with those colleagues who have opposite ideas. If this collection joined hands, chances for the approval of the decree will be increased. But if the government dealt with the issue superficially, there is a possibility that the House of Representatives rejects the decree," Abdoh further said.
Based on the constitution, parliament needs to clarify the fate of the decree within a month. But a month has passed since the decree was dispatched to parliament which is a clear violation of the constitution by the lawmakers. (Tolo News)