Supreme Court Confirms Ghani’s Service Term Until Elections

Afghanistan’s Supreme Court on Sunday said that President Ashraf Ghani will continue his term until a new president will be elected.

The Supreme Court said in a statement that based on the interpretation of the law and challenges in Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission (IEC) it confirms the continuation of President Ghani’s tenure until the re-election of a new president.

The letter doesn’t say anything about the fate of Afghanistan’s Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah who owns a 50% share of the government based on the National Unity Government agreement.

But a Spokesman for the Office of Chief Executive said that Mr. Abdullah and his deputies will continue their tenure until the inauguration of a new elected President.

However, a majority of the presidential candidates claim that based on the country’s constitution, President Ghani’s term will end on 22 May 2019.

According to these presidential candidates, Ghani has forced the Supreme Court to make the decision. The candidates also call on President Ghani and CE Abdullah to step down, emphasizing on the formation of a caretaker government until the end of the election.

This comes as Afghanistan’s presidential election is scheduled to be held on 28 September 2019.