Kazakhstan Senate Speaker backs seven-year presidential term

Speaker of the Senate (upper house of parliament) of Kazakhstan Maulen Ashimbaev supported the initiative of the head of the republic, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, to introduce a one-time seven-year presidential term, Report informs, citing TASS.

"This will allow our country to develop political competition, and we will take a serious step towards the formation of a balanced competitive democratic political system," Ashimbaev said.

According to him, this norm will further limit the concentration of power in the hands of one person in Kazakhstan. "Seven years is enough to implement an election program, fulfill the promises made to the population, implement some major projects for the country. This norm is part of the political reform program in Kazakhstan. It will allow you to take another important step towards demonopolization of power," the speaker of the Senate explained.

The Zhana Kazakhstan group, created from the deputies of the Mazhilis (lower house of parliament), supported the initiative to elect the president of the republic for a single seven-year term and proposed to amend the country's basic law so that the election of the head of state under the new rules would take place in the fall of 2022.