Parliament

KABUL (Pajhwok): The power utility chief on Wednesday said a list of electricity bill defaulters has been sent to the government and attorney offices for action against them.
Da Afghanistan Bareshna Shirkat head Abdul Razaq Samadi told the upper house of parliament or Meshrano Jirga that currently there was 40 percent load-shedding in Kabul and 22 percent in provinces.
“The load shedding is only for three months a year and the power is provided for 24 hours during the remaining nine months.”

KABUL (Pajhwok): Some senators on Tuesday renewed their call for the government to announce dates for holding parliamentary and district council elections and asked President Ghani to highlight Pakistan’s support for terrorism in the ‘Heart of Asia Conference.’
Heart of Asia Conference - Istanbul Process
The Istanbul Ministerial Process was established in 2011 to provide a platform to discuss regional issues, particularly encouraging security, political, and economic cooperation among Afghanistan and its neighbours.

KABUL (Pajhwok): Lawmakers on Monday asked President Ashraf Ghani to seriously mention Pakistan’s interference in Afghanistan’s affairs during the two-day Heart of Asia - Istanbul Process conference in Islamabad.
Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are the members of the Hearth of Asia process.

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Meshrano Jirga -- upper house of the parliament -- on Sunday approved two legislative decrees issued by the president, exempting security bosses from holding acting charge and imposing a 10 percent tax on mobile-phone users.
But the Senate, while endorsing the presidential decrees, proposed the cost of a one-minute call be reduced to one afghani. The communications commission head, Javed Rauf, placed the legislative decree before the house for approval.

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Wolesi Jirga deputy speaker on Wednesday said the government might collapse if he presented evidenceof the National Security Council’s support for the Islamic State (IS) -- also known as Daesh.
On November 23, Zahir Qadir, told a general session of the lower house that Daesh leaders were living in Kabul under the patronage of the NSC. He had accused the government of aiding the dreaded militant outfit.

KABUL (Pajhwok): Some members of Meshrano Jirga on Tuesday sharply reacted to a statement from the US embassy in Kabul regarding the possibility of a suicide attack, asking the mission not to confuse people.
A day earlier, the embassy said in a statement on its website it had received credible reports that there would be suicide attack in the next 48 hours. It warned US citizens in Kabul to avoid unnecessary commuting in the city.

KABUL (Pajhwok): President Ashraf Ghani’s nominees as members of the Constitution oversight commission and the Supreme Court High Council were on Monday introduced to the Wolesi Jirga for a vote of confidence.
The nominees include six members-designate of the Independent Commission for Overseeing the Implementation of Constitution (ICOIC) and a member-designate of the Supreme Court High Council.
The seven individuals were introduced to the lower house by Second Vice-President Mohammad Sarwar Danish on Monday.

KABUL (Pajhwok): A number of Wolesi Jirga members have criticised lawmaker Zahir Qadir for accusing the National Security Advisor of supporting Islamic State (IS) or Daesh, but Qadir said he would resign if failed to prove his allegations.
On November 23, Zahir Qadir, the first deputy speaker of the lower house, told a general session that Daesh or the self-styled Islamic State leaders were living in Kabul under the patronage of the National Security Council (NSC). He had also accused the government of supporting the militant outfit.

KABUL (Pajhwok): Meshrano Jirga or Senate Chairman Fazal Hadi Muslimyar on Sunday said Russia was ready to provide military assistance to Afghanistan.
Muslimyar, who just returned from a trip to Moscow, told the upper house that Russia was likely provide 20,000 AK-47 assault rifles to Afghan security forces in the coming 20 days.
He said during his visit to the Kremlin, Russian officials assured him of speedy military assistance to Afghan forces.

JALALABAD (Pajhwok): Hundreds of residential plots in the Police Town have been sold illegally in the eastern province of Nangarhar, public representatives claimed on Sunday.
Work on the 500-plot housing schemes, also known as Sherzai Town, in front of the Police Training Centre, was initiated eight years ago. But the project came to a halt at a time when policemen had already paid 30,000 afghanis for each plot.