Kabul (BNA) As millions of Afghans ushered in a new year Sunday, in the Persian calendar, President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani marked the occasion by planting a tree at the Presidential Palace in Kabul.
Later, President Ghani and First Lady Rula Ghani, along with First Vice President Amrullah Saleh visited a Nawroz exhibition of locally produced goods.
In his New Year message, President Ghani called on the Taliban to stop killing Afghans and not to let “strangers” manipulate them.
“The Taliban have no legitimacy for this war. They are [Taliban] proud that they did not attack the foreign forces, but who gave them the legitimacy to kill their Afghan brothers? It is enough and don’t be the hand tool of strangers,” President Ghani said.
President Ghani also said the New Year, 1400, would be a year of digitization for Afghanistan.
“Today is a happy day that in the shortest time all our civilian salaries and air and defense will be electronic and will be done by phone,” President Ghani said.
“Distribution of electronic IDs distributions has surpassed three million, and Afghanistan will see a major digital boom this year,” the president added.
President Ghani also said there are still concerns around drought in the country and he called on parliament members to prioritize the country’s water management projects this year. “Our water everywhere which is our dignity will be managed in Afghanistan,” he said.
President Ghani stated that major economic projects are underway and Afghans have the capacity to become self-reliant. He hoped that this New Year, Afghan children will start school without security threats.
“We will achieve peace; a peace that ends bloodshed in the country and a peace with justice,” the president said.
Meanwhile First Lady Rula Ghani also said she hopes that the war will end this year. “I hope that violence and war should stop in the New Year,” said Rula Ghani.
Participants at the expo, who displayed goods and crafts, said that besides other benefits peace will provide economic growth for the country.
