KABUL - The Wolesi Jirga or lower house of Parliament during its 13th session on Thursday tasked another 10-member delegation to resolve differences over the speaker election.
On May 16, lawmakers Mir Rahman Rahmani, Mirwais Yasini, Kamal Naser Osuli and Omar Nasir contested for the speaker post.
However, none could bag enough votes to become speaker of the house and the ballot went to a second round, which was deferred to Sunday.
Mir Rahmani and Osuli, who received the highest numbers of votes on Thursday, were in the run for the slot in the second round of voting.
Atta Mohammad Dehqanpor, provisional speaker, said there were 247 lawmakers present in the house and a candidate was required to collect 124 votes to win the seat.
In the second round, Rahmani bagged 123 votes --- one vote short of the threshold --- and Osuli collected 55 votes. However, Dehqanpur declared Rahmani as winner, triggering a dispute among lawmakers.
The Wolesi Jirga convened session today but the media was not allowed to cover it.
Humayon Harirud, a lawmaker from Parwan province, told reporters after the session that a 10-member delegation headed by Gul Ahmad Noorzada, a lawmaker from Farah province, was tasked to prepare a plan for resolution of differences over speaker’s position.
“Until law and principles of internal affairs of the house are not followed as standards and until some lawmakers refrain from using threatening language and intimidation, the problem will not be resolved,” he said, while stressing over the settlement of the dispute.
But Qazi Mir Afghan Safi, a lawmaker from Kabul province, said no delegation could settle the dispute until the house session was not organized in line with the law and principles of the house. “If a temporary speaker is elected and he convenes the session of the house, the problem could be resolved.”  (Pajhwok)