KANDAHAR: A dispute between government officials in Kandahar province has paralysed the police force, forcing soldiers to patrol the streets of the provincial capital. An official from the federal government, Interior Minister Ali Ahmad Jalali, was expected to arrive in Kandahar on Saturday to negotiate a settlement in the standoff, a spokesman for provincial Governor Gul Agha Sherzai said. The effort by President Hamid Karzai’s government to resolve the dispute is an example of actions he has taken to gain more control over outlying provinces, many of which are still ruled by warlords.
| Sisyphus had it easier... |
The dispute in Kandahar province involves police chief General Mohammed Akram, who sacked deputy police chief Dagarwal Nazar Jan on Wednesday and replaced him with Faqir Mohammed Askar. Jan is an ally of Governor Sherzai, Kandahar’s strongman. Akram said his move was based on orders from the Interior Ministry in Kabul. But Sherzai’s spokesman, Khalid Pashtoon, said the ministry had issued no such order and Akram had made the decision on his own.
| "Can't have that, y'know. Nope. Nope. Making a decision on one's own? Unheard of!" |
Both sides said there was no tension in the city, but its 12 police departments were divided in the dispute and stopped working. That forced soldiers to replace them on patrol. Akram defended his decision to appoint the new deputy, saying that Askar had worked as a policeman for 20 years. By contrast, he said, Jan was unable to fulfil his duties or control the Kandahar police department.
Akram earlier said Kandahar’s police force of more than 5,000 men had split into two factions, one loyal to Karzai’s central government and the other to Governor Sherzai. |