DUSHANBE, November 29, 2008, Asia-Plus — “Some 90 percent of voters even do not know name of deputies representing them in parliament,” Subhon Safiulloyev, the head of the Communist Party (CPT) organization for Dushanbe, said in an interview with Asia-Plus on November 28, following that the sixth session of the Election Law Working Group.
According to him, MPs should report back to their constituencies at least once a quarter. He also pointed to the necessity of making amendments to the electoral code to increase powers of members of local legislatures.
In the meantime, the deputy head of the Social-Democratic Party (SDPT), Shokirjon Hakimov, told Asia-Plus that improvement of the election legislation was an important aspect for strengthening of democratic institutions, improvement of the country’s political system and establishment of parliamentary control over the system of social relations and state power.
“We hope that due to influence of the OSCE and other international organizations the government will incline to improve the election legislation,” said Hakimov, “Attraction of foreign investments in the country’s economy as well as involvement of new political elite in the state government system will depend on this.”
