Monitoring Desk
KABUL: The State Department strongly reacted to President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani’s move regarding the dismemberment of the Ministry of Finance as the US Institute of Peace (USIP) had earlier warned that the move would harm the country’s development and jeopardize the sustainability of peace if an agreement is reached with the Taliban.
“Troubling new @USIP report that the Afghan govt is “eviscerating” & “gravely weakening” the Ministry of Finance by “carving out key constituent parts, putting them directly under the presidential palace.” The Afghan people need accountable government,” Alice Wells, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia said in a Twitter post.
The US Institue of Peace in a report said the Afghan government is eviscerating the ministry—carving out key constituent parts, putting them directly under the presidential palace, and gravely weakening one of the country’s most effective institutions. “It’s a move that’s bad for Afghanistan’s governance and financial viability.”
“The ministry’s dismemberment began on February 19 when—amid the ongoing dispute over the results of the presidential election—President Ashraf Ghani issued a decree instituting major changes in its administrative structure and reporting arrangements,” USIP added in its report.
The report also added “Under this order, three core functional areas of the Ministry of Finance (MoF)—revenue, customs, and treasury and budget—are to be carved out as independent units, reporting directly to the President’s Office (via the Administrative Affairs Office of the President), completely bypassing the minister of finance and deputy minister.”
“In these critical functions, MoF will be relegated to providing administrative and logistical support, with no supervisory authority and presumably no accountability,” USIP said, adding that “Instead, an unclearly defined “advisory board,” probably located in the palace and led by a senior presidential advisor, will be in charge, likely with direct oversight by the president.” (Khaama Press)
