No disagreement on Cabinet picks: Azad

KABUL and there are no differences between the leaders on ministers-designate.”

These views were expressed by the deputy presidential spokesman, Najibullah Azad, in a video clip sent to Pajhwok Afghan News on Tuesday.

Azad rejected as baseless claims that President Ashraf Ghani and CEO Abdullah Abdullah were in disagreement over the Cabinet nominees.

About the delay in introducing Cabinet nominees to the lower house of parliament for a vote of confidence, he said the reason for the search for suitable candidates. He said soon eligible candidates would be introduced to the parliament.

Currently nearly a dozen ministries are headed by acting ministers. The Wolesi Jirga has repeated asked the president to introduce his Cabinet picks for the trust vote.

Under the relevant law, an official cannot work in office in acting capacity beyond two months.

The deputy presidential spokesman admitted there were some problems within the government but said they did not mean the government was against reforms or unwilling to bring reforms.

He said the departments concerned were working to banish corruption from public entities and pave the way for appointments on merit.

About a report that claimed the Afghan government was supporting the Taliban and benefitting from Daesh, Azad said the report was baseless. He said the government had never supported any rebel group.

He said the president had said in the Kabul Process meeting that the Taliban had little time to come to the negotiating table before they were destroyed.

“Then how can the government support one terrorist group against the other,” he asked.

He said everyone who killed innocent people and wanted to collapse the government were the enemy.

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