| | Pandemonium over Karzai election mars Parliament session Pajhwok
11/06/2009
By Abaseen Zaheer
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KABUL - A verbal clash between parliamentarians led to postponement of the Wolesi Jirga session, which was discussing declaration of President Hamid Karzai as winner of the August 20 polls.
Karzai was declared winner of the election after withdrawal of his key rival Abdullah Abdullah from the second round of polls.
Some members of parliament exchanged harsh words following observations of Speaker Younus Qanuni that decision taken by heads of various commissions of the House should not be discussed in general sessions.
The House divided over the remarks of Younus Qanuni as some members were in favour of discussion while others suggested that the matter should be shelved.
Ahmad Behzad, MP from the western Herat province, criticized the decision of heads of the parliamentary commissions.
However, Qanuni observed that it was the authority of the heads of commissions to include or keep out any issue from the agenda. Behzad accused the administrative officials of the Parliament for not having proper knowledge about violation under which Karzai was declared as winner of the polls by the IEC.
Criticising the IEC decision, the MP from Herat said it was a step towards monarchy instead of the rule of democracy in the country. He addressed Karzai as 'king' instead of president of Afghanistan in his emotional speech.
Behzad speech forced Eng. Muhammad Alam Qarar, another MP from the eastern province of Laghman to blame the administrative wing of the Parliament for allowing the members full concessions to speak on any topic.
Qarar said Behzad had no authority to speak in such tone and utter such words against a person declared president of the country by a responsible body. The two MPs, along with some others, issued threats of beating to each others while the session was in progress.
As hot discussion on the topic continued, some MPs started chanting Allaho Akbar, long live Karzai while some other were raising slogans like death to Karzai.
In the highly tense atmosphere, member from the northwestern Faryab province Sardar Rahman Oghli said Karzai's next term was a blessing for smugglers, kidnappers, land mafia and violators of human rights.
Other MPs, who were supporting Karzai, responded in the same coin to Oghli and the bedlam forced the speaker to postpone the session till next day.
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