KABUL - Wolesi Jirga on Wednesday decided to summon ministers of finance and economy to brief lawmakers on the afghani's free fall against major currencies in recent months.
In 2003, one dollar traded for 45 afghanis. But on Tuesday, the greenback accounted for 55.60 afghanis, fuelling concerns among traders and residents.
A legislator from central Parwan province, Siddique Ahmad Osmani told the lower house that prices of essential commodities were going up as a result of the falling local currency.
In order to deal with the situation effectively, he asked President Hamid Karzai for bringing changes to the central bank's leadership.
"Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) governor should voluntarily stand down with dignity to pave the ground for a young and creative man who could boost the country's economy," the lawmaker said.
Ghulam Hussain Nasiri, an MP from Maidan Wardak province, echoed Osmani's view and called for DAB Governor Noorullah Delawari's resignation. He questioned the government's assessment that the country would face no major crisis after the 2014 pullout of foreign forces.
"A dangerous storm will sweep the post-2014 Afghanistan," he warned, saying the rates of daily-use items had already started shooting up -- a precursor of testing economic times ahead.
Another member from Faryab, Naqibullah Faiq, also suggested changes in the government's teams of finance and agriculture managers for Afghanistan's economic growth.
Speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi announced the ministers of finance and economy as well as the DAB governor had been summoned for Wednesday to answer parliamentarians' questions on the subject.
While acknowledging concerns among the people over escalating rates of essential items, the speaker urged the authorities concerned to explain reasons for the price hike.
On Tuesday, the DAB governor said the afghani was depreciating as result of illegal money transfers and currency fluctuations in international markets. Delawari explained the fall in the afghani value was not linked to the domestic economic situation.
In 2012, the country's gross domestic income rose by seven percent, compared to 3.5 percent last year, the governor said. Simultaneously, the inflation rate fell from 11 percent in 2011 to 5.4 percent this year, when the central bank's dollar reserves increased to $7 billion from $6 billion. (Pajhwok)