From ARG’s Efforts to Sepidar’s stance; E-IDCs hostages of Political Controversies
The presidential palace spokesperson Shah Hussain Mortazavi wrote on his official Facebook page, the biometric process of political figures and senior government officials have been ongoing since Friday in order to distribute electronic ID cards.
On the other hand, the Sepidar Palace vowed in a statement that the issue of distributing electronic identity cards (E-IDCs) is one of the major national issues and requires more discussion and accuracy, and the executive directorate has therefore called for the suspension of it.
However, the acting presidential spokesperson wrote: the biometric process of political faces and senior government officials has been started for the distribution of E-IDCs under the title of “the beginning of a new chapter.”
“For the first time, country’s citizens will get standard ID cards. The biometric process of political figures and top government officials underway since Friday,” Shah Hussain Mortazavi wrote in the post.
Mr. Mortazavi said citizens demand the distribution of E-IDCs, and the government has a serious intention to put it into practice.
It is said that the second VP Sarwar Danish and his wife have also attended the biometric process to receive E-IDCs.
Meanwhile, the Sepidar Palace vowed in a statement that the distribution of E-IDCs is a national issue and requires more discussion and accuracy in order to reach a national consensus and a general agreement.
“On this basis, in order to achieve a national consensus and collective agreement and to avoid further disagreements, the executive directorate had called for a delay in the distribution of the cards,” Sepidar added.
The statement further said, Dr. Abdullah will meet with president Ghani on Saturday to discuss and resolve the issue of distributing E-IDCs at the level of government.
Moreover, experts believe that with this action, ARG palace is creating a foreground for the distribution of E-IDCs and by gradually brining it in the news and hot subjects, is pushing to de-taboo and make the public opinion ready to accept it.
However, the executive directorate’s stance indicates that senior officials themselves have not yet agreed on the distribution of E-IDCs without putting ethnicity.
The distribution of E-IDCs has long been delayed over differences on whether writing the word “Afghan” and people’s ethnicity or not.
