Original title: Denying the money and running away, saying that it was an expedient measure that the Afghan president was criticized as “traitor of the people!”
[Global Times Special Correspondent in Pakistan Cheng Shijie Global Times Special Correspondent Liu Haoran]”The traitor of the people!” After the scandal that fled with huge sums of money was reported, Afghan President Ghani was recently criticized by public opinion, and his reputation fell to the bottom of the past. In just a few days, the president of the country has become a “coward” who abandons the country and ignores it. On the 18th, Ghani, whose whereabouts had been a mystery, appeared in the UAE and said that he wanted to return to China. However, some analysts believe that Ghani has always taken a tough stance against the Taliban during his administration and refused to engage in any form of peace talks with the Taliban, especially when the Taliban claimed to seize most of the rural areas of Afghanistan and were not eager to attack the city. Former Afghan President Karzai There are many opinions from the international community that this may be the best time for the two sides to reach a compromise, but Ghani explicitly rejected the possibility of negotiation. The 72-year-old Ghani may not return to his homeland in order to protect himself. In addition, it was revealed by the media that his daughter is currently living in a wealthy New York area, which has also triggered heated discussions. The Afghan public opinion is still fermenting anger against Ghani, and the United States said that Ghani is no longer important.
“Forced to leave with a suit, vest and sandals”
According to a report by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on the 19th, just as the Taliban approached Kabul last weekend, Ghani, who had seen a bad situation, chose to flee secretly. According to the Russian Embassy in Kabul, Ghani carried a total of 169 million US dollars in cash when he fled. As soon as this scandal was revealed, it almost immediately aroused public resentment in Afghanistan. Some Afghan officials have publicly expressed their hope that Interpol will arrest Ghani on charges of embezzling state funds.
According to the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on the 18th, Ghani has now been asylum by the UAE, and the country has received Ghani and his family for “humanitarian reasons.” Later on the 18th, Ghani also issued a video statement, resolutely denying that his actions were “fleeing”, saying that this move was to promote a “peaceful transition of power”. He supported former President Karzai and Chairman of the High Commission for National Reconciliation of Afghanistan. Abdullah is negotiating with the Taliban, and his return to China is currently under negotiation.
Ghani also revealed the details of the “evacuation” in the video, saying that he was escorted out of the presidential palace by security forces. Ghani argued that the exodus was an expedient measure to avoid the “blood incidents” in Afghanistan like Syria and Yemen. He also said that if he does not leave Afghanistan, he may be “hanged in front of the people.” Regarding the episode of fleeing with a huge amount of money, Ghani said that he was “forced to leave Afghanistan with a set of traditional clothes, a vest and sandals”. “The allegations that I transferred money in the past few days are totally groundless.”
The Minister of Defense of the Ghani government, Bismillah Mohammedi, tweeted Ghani on the 15th, saying: “This damn rich man and his small group tied our hands behind their backs and betrayed them. The country.” Abdullah criticized: “Ghani will accept Allah’s accountability and the trial of the Afghan people.”
The president’s daughter lives well in the United States
While the Afghan president fled, the “petty bourgeoisie life” of the president’s daughter Mariam Ghani in the United States was exposed by the media: she lives in Brooklyn and owns a cross-floor house, and the median housing price in the area Approximately US$1 million. According to public opinion, the daughter of the President of Afghanistan is actually an American who has never been to Afghanistan before she was 24 years old.
According to media reports such as the New York Post, Mariam, 42 years old, was born in New York and grew up in Maryland. He graduated from New York University and the New York School of Visual Arts with a degree in comparative literature, photography and installation art. Mariam is an artist, photographer, producer, and journalist with multiple jobs. Since 2004, she has co-produced the feature-length documentary “Index of the Vanished”, which chronicles the dilemmas faced by Afghan immigrants in the post-September 11 era-such as many people being detained, deported, and extradited for no reason. Regarding the current situation in Afghanistan, Mariam did not comment; but she called on the American people to petition government officials to suspend the deportation of Afghan refugees and issue special visas for them.
However, online public opinion did not buy into her “good intentions”. Some Twitter netizens sharply criticized: “I don’t know how much of the tax we pay is supporting her luxurious life.” The New York Post also sarcastically said. , The “bohemian literary life” enjoyed by this “diaspora princess” is in sharp contrast with the situation of ordinary people in Afghanistan.
From “country builder” to “non-important person”
Gani’s escape caused domestic reprimands, but also aroused sighs from foreign public opinion. The National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) stated that Ghani had promised to “rebuild Afghanistan” when he took office, but now his political legacy is just a basket of “talent but unfulfilled promises.” Garney was an economist before entering politics. He taught at the University of California, Berkeley and Johns Hopkins University, and later worked at the World Bank. He has unique insights into topics such as nation-building and social transformation. According to Bloomberg, before being elected president, Ghani devoted his life to studying “how to achieve economic growth in poor countries.”
After embarking on the political path, Ghani assumed the great expectations of a “nation builder” and has been committed to obtaining international assistance for the construction of Afghanistan for a long time. He has been called the core think tank of Afghanistan’s reconstruction plan by the West. But in the eyes of bystanders, he is more in line with the characteristics of a “technocratic” and less like a political leader. In the complex Afghan political arena, he can even be regarded as an “outsider” who does not have the political power to unite various factions. NBC revealed that Ghani has a grumpy temper and a mean speech, and has long been at odds with former President Karzai.
Following the statement made by Jack Sullivan, Assistant to the US President for National Security Affairs, later on the 18th, US Deputy Secretary of State Sherman reiterated that Ghani “is no longer an important figure in the political situation in Afghanistan.” Sherman declined to comment on the UAE’s offer of asylum to Ghani. However, according to BBC reports, the US government still calls Ghani the “President Ghani” because the Afghan regime has not yet officially transferred.
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