Afghan president inaugurates newly-elected parliament

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - Afghan President Ashraf Ghani inaugurated the newly-elected parliament on Friday after troubled elections last year in the war-ravaged country.

Addressing the maiden session, Ghani stressed the parliament should robustly perform its three-tier task of monitoring the activities of the government, legislation and representation of the public.

He said parliament is the key element of governance in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

The full and final results of the Wolesi Jirga (lower house) elections for all provinces held in October are yet to be announced amid allegations of rigging, irregularities and technical glitches.

The UN mission in Afghanistan noted in a report last year that the Taliban launched a deliberate campaign of violence and intimidation to disrupt parliamentary elections, including attacks on civilians, which resulted in 435 casualties.

Ten candidates were killed in terror attacks across the country.

Final results for the Kabul province are yet to be announced, while polls are due in restive Ghazni province.