The government of national unity seems no closer to pulling off the tricky balancing act of choosing a council of ministers.
It is six weeks since Ashraf Ghani took over as president.
The government of national unity seems no closer to pulling off the tricky balancing act of choosing a council of ministers.
It is six weeks since Ashraf Ghani took over as president. At his inauguration he promised to deliver on poll promises including administrative and economic reforms. Ministers in the previous government were reappointed as caretakers and told to get on with their work.
Soaring expectations have already sparked frustration, according to Fayeqa Behroz, civil society activist. Ministers who know they are merely filling in until new appointments are made do not have their hearts in the job.
Farooq Ahmadi who lives in Ghazni says he has made many futile visits to process documents at a government office. The concerned official is never available. The staff are also disinterested and unmotivated. “This is the situation countrywide,” he says in frustration.
Calls on the government to act can be heard from civil society activists and Parliament. On Nov 10, the issue again figured on the agenda of Parliament. Members see the deteriorating security situation as a result of the anarchy in government offices.
Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi, speaker of the Wolesi Jirga, lower house said, “The formation of cabinet is essential … Considering the current situation, the government should announce the cabinet soon. The performance of acting ministers who are not really interested is not beneficial at all to the country.”
Shukria Barakzai, the Member of Parliament (MP) from Kabul, points to the brazen suicide attack on the Kabul Police headquarters on Nov 9 as a “red light” warning for the government. She considers the formation of cabinet as essential to stop the nearly daily explosions and suicide attacks.
The two partners in the national unity government, the supporters of President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah respectively, have to agree on a power sharing arrangement before the names of new ministers can be decided.
Earlier Engineer Mohammad Khan, the first deputy of the chief executive, had spoken about the failure to come to an understanding on how to divide power between the two sides. Political analysts say a situation where there are parallel governments would be disastrous.
Mohammad Qarabaghi, a writer and journalist, observes, “If ministries and government offices get linked to one or other side, loyal to either the president or the chief executive, work would grind to a halt, and friction between the two sides would rise.” He believes this would wreck the process of governance, and breed anarchy. Also far from being a national unity government, it would be a regime pulling in different directions.
Political observers point to the enormous consequences for the country should Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah not come to an agreement. Azhar who teaches in the Law Faculty of Kabul University says, “The destiny of the nation would be like meat of Qurbani (sacrifice) if government leaders don’t agree on the division of power.”
Azhar considers the power sharing agreement that led to the national unity government as unconstitutional. “The agreement between the two sides in the runoff elections for division of power is contrary to constitution.” He says rumours are flying that cabinet posts would be given to loyalists of the two leaders. Others say the announcement would be put off no matter what the cost to the public; the delay would prepare the ground for people’s acceptance of whoever is selected, whether or not they are suitable choices.
Public opinion is strongly in favour of candidates who are capable, and not individuals appointed because of their contacts or tribal affiliations.
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