Afghanistans Supreme Court has ruled that President Hamid Karzai should stay in power beyond the constitutional end of his term in May and until the next election, state television said late Sunday. The decision ends weeks of uncertainty about a potential power vacuum caused by the constitutions stipulation that the presidential term ends May 21 although elections have only been set for three months later.
In a ruling delivered to the presidential palace Sunday, the Supreme Court said it had decided that Karzai should stay in office until the next leader is in power, state broadcaster RTA said in an evening bulletin. The independent Pajhwok Afghan News agency also reported that the court had said the present government should remain in place until the next president takes charge.
The presidents office could not immediately be reached for confirmation. Political opponents want Karzai to end his term as laid down in the constitution and a caretaker appointed, saying their adversarys chances at the polls would be boosted if he held onto the presidency until the vote. Afghanistans second-ever presidential election is a crucial test of the democratic system the fragile nations allies have been working to install after the 2001 ouster of the extremist Taliban regime in a US-led invasion.
The Taliban were able to regroup after their removal and are waging a growing insurgency that overshadows Afghanistans attempts to rebuild after decades of war.
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