The Presidential Palace on Saturday blasted the second deputy chief executive Mohammad Mohaqeq for his remarks about the controversial zone-based election plan and insecurity in Ghazni province.

The Presidential Palace also said his remarks were baseless and that they were made with only his personal interests in mind. 

In a Facebook post on Friday, Mohaqeq said: “It is said that the war against Hazara people is being carried out with the encouragement of government intelligence and by pro-government Taliban.”

In turn, the Presidential Palace asked Mohaqeq to refrain from making such comments. 

“The claim by Mr Mohaqeq is baseless and is far from reality. As a responsible person (in the eyes of) the law, he should prove any allegations that he has. He should not damage the national security of the country for his personal interests and he should not create tension in people’s minds,” said Haroon Chakhansuri, the president’s spokesman.

Mohaqeq meanwhile also stated in his post that “the worst and most appalling (factors) are the reports which say the decision to attack Hazara areas (in Ghazni) after the three-day ceasefire was made by government and it is said that the war against Hazara people is done at the encouragement of government’s intelligence (agencies) and by pro-government Taliban.”

“Some secure areas in Ghazni province in the Jaghori and Malistan districts are now heavily under Taliban attack and there are movements around the province and government forces are aware of it,” said Ali Alizada, an MP. 

Mohaqeq has termed the zone-based election plan for Ghazni as illegal, saying that “this shows a forbidden discrimination between ethnic groups who are brothers among themselves and it is an organized effort against the powerful presence of a number of ethnic groups in parliament”.

Meanwhile, one MP, Shahgul Rezaee said in response to this that “any movement beyond the law in any part of Afghanistan including Ghazni will affect the electoral process.” 

“The Constitution and the election law say that the part of all people in elections shall be clear,” said Hafizulalh Hashemi, a member of the Independent Election Commission. 

The deputy chief executive also called on Ghazni residents not to attack others but to defend their areas in case of any attack by the Taliban – whether in Jaghori district or other areas.

Mohaqeq has been quite vocal in the past about ethnic issues and addressing supporters in northern Balkh province in March, he said all ethnic groups in Afghanistan must have an equal share in the political structure of the country.

At the time he claimed that a specific circle in the country had tightened its grip on the country’s economic and political power and warned that such an approach would push the nation into crisis.

Mohaqeq also said: “Power monopoly and other injustices are not acceptable. This approach will create serious challenges for the country and the situation will deteriorate.”

Mohaqeq’s post on Facebook on Friday comes after the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan (IEC) announced it would conduct zone-based elections in Ghazni.

The controversial move sparked much anger in the country with some MPs claiming the move is in contradiction to the election law and is “totally biased”.

Ghazni MPs warned they would resist what they described as a “discriminatory act” by the IEC.

Based on the IEC decision, Ghazni has been divided into three electoral zones. The candidates who secure majority of the votes from these zones will be declared as winners.