Afghanistan's acting PM Hassan blames ex-President Ashraf Ghani for economic turmoil

Almost three months after taking charge as acting Prime Minister of Afghanistan, Mohammad Hassan Akhund, on Saturday broke his silence over the distressed situation of the nation. Citing Afghanistan’s National Radio and Television, news agency Khaama Press reported that Akhund blamed former President Ashraf Ghani for the "worrisome" condition of the country.

According to Akhund, Ghani and his colleagues were entangled in corruption and funds embezzlement. Accusing Ghani, he said that the Taliban government found an "established bank" inside the Presidential palace. Akhund also blamed Ghani for keeping a "bulk of cash" inside the Presidential palace. He said Ghani left the cash while escaping, Khaama Press reported.

Notably, the statement from Afghanistan's interim Prime Minister comes in the light of harsh criticism on social media about not addressing the concerns of people.

'No country should interfere in internal matters of Afghanistan': PM Akhund 

Akhund said that the Taliban government wants to establish good relations with the international community but added, "No country should interfere in the internal matters of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan."

"Islamic Emirate wants good relations with all countries, wants economic relations with them, does not want to interfere in others' internal affairs and urges countries to continue their aid to the people of Afghanistan (sic)," Akhund was quoted as saying by TOLO News.

Talking about rising poverty in the already war-torn country, Akhund accused ex-President Ghani of leaving the country in a 'tumultuous' state. According to him, the economic crisis was present since the last regime. The Afghan PM said that the country's economic crisis will be solved if the central bank's frozen assets are released. It is worth mentioning that the United States has frozen nearly $9.5 billion in assets belonging to the Afghan central bank and stopped shipments of cash to the nation in order to force the Taliban to restore human rights and other promises made before taking charge of the country.

On November 17, the government also wrote a letter to the United States Congress urging them to release the central bank assets.

Afghanistan's financial systems 'on verge of collapse'

According to a recent report published by the United Nations, Afghanistan's banking and financial systems are on the "verge of collapse" after the Taliban ousted the country's democratic government in mid-August this year. 

Recently, the Afghan Central Bank capped the withdrawal limit equivalent of $400 a week, or $1,200 a month citing cash crunches in the country. Though the Taliban claimed the decision to ban the foreign currency aimed to stabilize the economy, the residents are not in the mood to convenience with the excuses announced by the extremist group. While speaking about women's rights and education, he claimed that his government has provided women with "all their rights", and added education will be continued as earlier to improve the condition of the debt-ridden country.

(With inputs from ANI, Image: ANI/AP)