The concerns of Afghanistan's opposition parties and civil society members are increasing about the transition process, reconciliation with Taliban, future of the political system and the issue of peace and tranquility. One of the basic problems with these processes is that they are not being made very much transparent and participatory.

The ambiguities give rise to concerns and distrust. So the same is happening with all such crucial processes. Afghanistan's Presidential office has in fact kept on striving to limit the power and authority to itself and on certain occasions has used the same irresponsibly. Moreover, the office's soft attitude towards Taliban, in the face of their growing insurgency, has made the opposition parties and the civil society members doubt its intentions. The need of time is to make sure that all the important processes should not end in more disturbance and disorder in Afghan society which rather needs peace and tranquility.

Afghan National Front (ANF), on Wednesday, May 30, 2012, held a procession in Taluqan city of northern Takhar province, with the participation of a large gathering. Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, a prominent leader of the Front said Taliban have been trying to gain strength in different parts of country so that they can continue war after the withdrawal of international forces in 2014.

In the same effort, he said, Taliban are positioning themselves in northern areas of Afghanistan; "The Taliban have taken control of some places in areas of Samangan, Shadyan Valley, and Ghormach Mountains and they are preparing for a battle after 2014… They don't believe in peace."

However, the Afghan government, especially President Karzai, himself, has been very much confident that Taliban would be galvanized by the slogans of peace and harmony. So far he has not been true in his belief as Taliban have responded with a boycott of peace talks and continuity of insurgency in different parts of country. And now they have turned their concentration towards the northern areas. The government, instead of calling them for peace talks, must for the moment carry out measures to tackle the growing terrorist networks of Taliban.

Dostum also ensured that Taliban would not be allowed to gain ground through terrorism. He also urged the Afghans to support their army and police against these fighters, saying if the rebels did not accept peace, they would rise in arms against the guerillas in support of the security forces.

He also said that they were against peace talks with the Taliban because Afghans did not want their schools closed, schoolgirls poisoned and innocent people killed anymore. It would be really a very pathetic situation if even after the withdrawal of the international troops, Afghan government and US are not able to have successful peace negotiations with Taliban.

With the continuity of terrorism by Taliban, there would be every chances of a civil war because people would not wait and see their beloved ones being killed by the Taliban fighters. Afghan government and US have to come up with some concrete policies regarding negotiation with Taliban. The secret and non-participatory talks would never yield the desired result. It is necessary that the parties to the conflict should be present in the peace talks; otherwise, it would be very difficult to address the root of the issue.

Dostum Also emphasized on a transparent election in 2014 and even hoped that the National Front's victory would be certain if the election was fraud-free. Who is going to win the election is yet to be determined; however, the important thing is that the elections should be made transparent. It is not only necessary because of a better leadership for the country but also for the future of the democratic process in Afghanistan.

Showing his disappointment from the current government, Ahmad Zia Massoud, in his address, accused the government of corruption and ignoring Mujahiddins. "We are heading towards deep crisis after 11 years of war," he cautioned. In fact, all the major political leaders of the country are unsure about the future and completely dissatisfied of the performance of the government.

What they have observed in the reign of current government is nothing more than climbing corruption and ill-governance. It is really unfortunate to note that the Western allies, apart from certain reiterations, have not pressed the Afghan government truly regarding the issues of corruption and ill-governance and everything gained in the 11 years of war is in the danger of being lost.

The same was forcefully described by Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq in his speech; he said, "Despite billions of aid dollars poured into Afghanistan to help rebuild the shattered infrastructure and economy over the past decade, the officials concerned proved they have no management skills and capability to achieve the desired goals… The money has been embezzled and projects granted to companies having links with the government." Talking about the security situation and the capability of Afghan government to guarantee security, he said, "If the government was unable to maintain security in Kabul, how it could protect the entire country."

Apart from the concerns regarding corruption and ill-governance, Afghan National Front has been very much critical of the present form of government. It, on various occasions, has mentioned that the present form of government is highly centralized and revolves around the Presidential office; therefore, ANF has asked for a change in the form of government from presidential to parliamentary, as it considers it more appropriate for Afghan society and better to be called as a democratic government.

Relating to the same, Mohaqiq described Karzai's government a dictatorship, calling for district chiefs and provincial governors to be chosen by the people through election, not by the head of the state. This is really necessary for a true delegation of authority and also in accordance to the constitution of Afghanistan.

If the district chiefs and provincial governors are elected by the people, there would be better accountability and people would consider themselves more involved in the affairs of the country. Moreover, they would have more chances of political awareness and there will be a development towards a better democracy in Afghanistan.