The Afghans are earnestly waiting for an agreement between the presidential candidates, which would not only support in eliminating the prevailing uncertainty but will also assist in starting a journey towards a system that has been called as National Unity Government. The stalemate of dialogue between the two candidates has worsened the situation and there are fears that the country would move towards serious instability if the power is not transitioned from the current president to the new one in a peaceful manner, within an atmosphere of trust and confidence.
Dr. Abdullah Abdullah after the stalemate of dialogue with the opposing candidate Dr. Ashraf Ghani, revealed his decision last week that he would not accept the result of the ongoing audit process, which means that the announcement of result may further lead to a series of protests by his team. Therefore, it seems important that the candidates should, once again, reach to some sort of agreement, give their consent that they would accept the result and then the result of the vote audit must be announced. Though Afghanistan Independent Election Commission (IEC) has announced that it would soon announce the result, postponing it after the agreement is a wiser decision.
The months of delay in the announcement of result and transition of power has influenced almost all the aspects of life in Afghanistan. Economic activities seem to be slowing, social psychology seems to be getting frightened and the security situation appears to be deteriorating. Both the presidential candidates must assist the country in coming out of this dire situation. They need to realize that the great politicians are the ones that make tough decisions at crucial junctures, but always support the nations to come out of difficulties. They are always the ones who keep the national interest more sacred and important than the individual interests and even do not hesitate to give sacrifices when required.
President Karzai on Saturday, September 13th, met both the candidates separately and expressed optimism that both the candidates would reach a final agreement in next two days.
Meeting with the Ulema Council, he said, “I found the candidates have built coordination and mutual understanding… God willing, differences between the two will be resolved in the next two days. In fact, they have almost been resolved.”
It is nice to see such optimism; however, there are concerns that even if the candidates agree for the time being and the results are accepted by them, it would require a lot of discussions and sincere efforts before the candidates are able to make the concept of Unity Government a reality. Such a government is new for Afghanistan and it would require the whole term before Afghanistan is able to make it fully functional. On the other hand, the candidates and their teams would require a real display of patience and democratic values and attitude during this time.
Nevertheless, to reach to that position, it is important that Afghanistan must come out of ongoing stalemate. The countries supporting Afghanistan have clearly mentioned that they would continue supporting Afghanistan if its leaders are able to shoulder their responsibilities appropriately and make the international community believe that they are able to lead the country and its people deserve to have a democratic system. US President, Barack Obama, made phone calls to both the Afghan presidential candidates last week and urged them to follow the deal regarding forming the Unity Government; moreover, NATO and UNAMA have also urged for peaceful solution of the current stalemate. In addition, different institutions, organizations and groups within Afghanistan, as well, have been urging for an end to the ongoing drama, which is becoming scarier.
Both the presidential candidates are in a position where they have the opportunity to lead the country towards a new era, an era of struggle towards a better democratic system and more stable political system. There are some analysts who believe that the concept of Unity Government may not be practical and is impossible to achieve; however, keeping the current scenario, it is wise to pursue the concept and with sincere efforts, it is possible to be achieved.