KABUL - Presidential hopefuls Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai have reached upon agreements on important issues regarding the national unity government, but continue to disagree on the roles of the president and the chief executive officer (CEO), according to Faizullah Zaki member of Ghani's camp.

It is said that the majority of the disagreements are stemmed from the responsibilities of the future president and the CEO position. Member of Abdullah's team, Said Agha Fazel Sancharaki, asserted that if the president and the CEO do not have equal authorities all agreements will be questioned.

The candidates met on Saturday for the fifth time. Most of their discussions have been held behind closed doors without the presence of the media, except for parts that the teams have chosen to publicize. The candidates are said to meet again on Tuesday to continue their discussions.

On Sunday morning the candidates met with President Hamid Karzai who emphasized that the inauguration ceremony must be held on time as his time in the office comes to an end.

"The main issue of discussion was the inauguration ceremony being held on time," Zaki said in regards to the meeting with President Karzai. "The candidates also discussed the prolonged election process and its effects on the people."

U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday night was said to have had a short conversation with both presidential candidates stressing that each candidate should honor their commitments and agreements and increase the number of meetings.

With only eight days left until the set date for the inauguration ceremony and President Karzai's emphasis on holding the ceremony on time, pressure is on the Independent Election Commission (IEC) to finish the entire process on time. (Tolonews)