KABUL - Lawmakers in the Wolesi Jirga (Lower House of Parliament) on Wednesday blasted government over its failure to appoint ministers to key positions.
They argued that government’s reluctance to nominate new ministers is in violation of the law and an insult to MPs.
According to parliament’s administrative board, President Ashraf Ghani assured MPs recently he would finalize nominees for vacant positions and for members of the Supreme Court, however this has not yet happened.
Back in November, the Wolesi Jirga - in an unprecedented move - dismissed seven cabinet ministers in a sweeping move that further added to the fragility of Ghani and CEO Abdullah Abdullah’s administration.
The lawmakers sacked the ministers over alleged shortcomings in their performance and their failure to spend their development budgets on time.
The dismissal sparked major concerns within the NUG. Later, government leaders referred the issue to the Supreme Court to interpret the constitutional terms on firing ministers.
The Supreme Court has still not issued a verdict on the issue.
MPs however feel that government has accepted their decision and in line with this the lawmakers are now pushing to fill the posts.
All seven ministers have continued to work despite their dismissal.
“The caretaker issue is nothing less than an act of oppression against the people of Afghanistan and an insult to the law and regulations,” said MP Ghulam Hussain Naseri.
“The existence of caretakers in the institutions and some ministers, whose fate was determined by parliament, is in fact creating serious harm to the development process,” said MP Farhad Azimi.
“We seriously reiterate our call to the president to deliver on his promises and introduce these ministers to the Wolesi Jirga as soon as possible,” said MP Abdul Qadir Zazai Watandost.
The NUG meanwhile says that steps are being taken to rectify the situation.
“Discussions have been held inside the government about this issue; ministers will be introduced to parliament for a vote of confidence in the near future,” CEO Abdullah Abdullah’s deputy spokesman Jawed Faisal said.
This comes a few days after government announced the appointment of Nargis Nehan as nominee for the position of minister of mines and petroleum (MoMP) - a post that has long been vacant.
At the same time, there is speculation that there could be a cabinet reshuffle in the near future. (Tolonews)