In the previous management system, he said, the leader did not feel nor was responsible for the situation in the country. “The president was sitting backstage,” Sadyr Japarov explained. “This led to the change of 35 heads of government in 30 years. After all, the president took credit for success in business and blamed failures on the cabinet and the government. In such a system, perhaps, the sweetness of power is palpable. But in the end, the State is buying time, not developing.”
According to Sadyr Japarov, the reform that has affected the verticality of power in recent years has radically changed many things. “Now it has been established at the legislative level: no matter how many prime ministers change, the responsibility for the fate of the people and the State lies with the president,” he emphasized. “So, frankly, I don’t feel the need. “The sweetness of power. And no one would feel it if the responsibility for the fate of the State and the people fell on his shoulders. He had to worry 24 hours a day about domestic and foreign policy.”
Sadyr Japarov admitted that the implementation of such a reform faces major obstacles. “We lived in a system in which we listened to whoever shouted the loudest and spoke most beautifully,” he recalls. “Instead of helping to escape the anarchy of mixed governance, which caused the country to almost collapse, some politicians and groups tried. interfere everywhere. It turns out that in recent decades they have become accustomed to living only for their own interests.”
“Seven nannies, as they say, have a child without an eye,” Sadyr Japarov noted. – And now, whoever is president after me, will be responsible to the people for both the good and the bad. Of course, we are all human and make mistakes. But the nature of people is such that this cannot be forgiven. Good deeds are quickly forgotten, but bad deeds will never be forgotten.
power brokers
Rehabilitation denied
The republic’s parliament refused to satisfy the request of the first head of Kyrgyzstan, Askar Akaev, to assign him the status of former president. Lawmakers made the decision last week by general vote.
71 deputies spoke out against the rehabilitation of Askar Akayev. A few days before the vote, the competent parliamentary committee expressed a similar opinion.
The high status sought by Askar Akayev grants the citizen of the republic immunity, which extends to the residential and office premises he occupies, the vehicles he uses, his luggage, communications equipment, his files and other property, documents and correspondence. . The holder of the title of former president also enjoys life-long state protection on the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic, one of the state dachas, free medical care, government communications and a lifetime monthly allowance. However, according to the current head of the republic, Sadyr Japarov, Akaev did not claim the listed benefits and privileges.
“I think he is not interested in pensions, security or similar things,” Sadyr Japarov stressed. – He turned 80 years old. It seems to me that Askar Akáyev presented this appeal so that his status as former president is maintained in history.
However, the Parliament of Kyrgyzstan considered that the first head of the republic did not deserve the right to special privileges.
“During the first years of independence, the country experienced great difficulties,” explained Nurlanbek Shakiyev, speaker of the Jogorku Kenesh (parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic), about the position of his colleagues. – There were more bad things than good. This is a major flaw of Askar Akaev as the first president. Therefore, I think the decision was correct. History itself will put everything in its place and the people will give their assessment.
But the President of Parliament can hardly be said to be an impartial observer. He was elected to the Jogorku Kenesh as a representative of the Aksy region. This district became widely known in the republic in the early 2000s due to mass unrest. The protests were organized by the opposition, which opposed the transfer of part of the Kyrgyz Republic’s territories to China, as part of the final settlement of border disputes. The demonstrations were harshly repressed. Several people died. In modern Kyrgyz history, the Aksy events are considered a historic political crisis that preceded the change of power and Askar Akayev’s own resignation from the presidency in 2005.
Despite the possible rejection of some fellow citizens, the first head of the republic can return to Kyrgyzstan without obstacles. No investigations are being carried out against him and he does not face any criminal proceedings.
At the moment, only Roza Otunbaeva, who led the country after the overthrow of Kurmanbek Bakiev in 2010, and Sooronbai Jeenbekov enjoy the status of former president in Kyrgyzstan. He was elected president as successor to Almazbek Atambayev and resigned early. His predecessor, in turn, was deprived of his high rank due to criminal charges against him. Former president status does not apply to Kurmanbek Bakiyev, whose reign ended with the deaths of several dozen protesters.
