Sources in Takhar province accuse Mohammad Rafiq Faruqi, the Taliban’s provincial finance chief, of administrative and financial corruption, nepotism, ethnic discrimination, and pressuring staff. He has reportedly handed several revenue-generating posts to people close to him. As a result, at least nine employees, including several ethnic Tajiks, have been forced to resign, while others have been demoted or transferred. The sources also allege embezzlement of public assets and misuse of government resources for personal gain. They say Faruqi is ethnic Turkmen and originally from Faryab province.
The sources say Faruqi appointed his first brother-in-law, Kifayatullah Nazari, as general manager of the tax department. Nazari is reportedly from Balkh province.
They add that Ghaibullah, a relative of Nazari’s by marriage, was appointed treasurer of the Yangi Qala district revenue office using a forged identity card, and performs his duties at the finance department without an official service letter.
The sources also say that, in violation of the Taliban supreme leader’s orders, this individual and several others have been spending nights at the finance department, even though local Taliban officials and their affiliates are barred under Akhundzada’s directive from residing in government offices. According to the sources, inspectors from the Taliban’s Directorate for Monitoring and Enforcement of Decrees in Takhar were given false information about this, despite the men’s continued presence there at night.
The sources further claim that Faruqi appointed his second brother-in-law to a service position, but that this person spends most of his time at Faruqi’s home, assisting his sister, who is Faruqi’s wife.
They also allege that Faruqi married a 14-year-old girl who is currently a student at Takhar’s Darul Uloom seminary. According to the sources, he also hired his wife’s brother, identified only as Shirzai, at his factory after altering the man’s age on his identity documents.
The sources claim Faruqi continues to use government fuel and vehicles for weekly trips to Faryab and other provinces, with the costs covered by department revenue. Last Aqrab, they say, he transported almonds harvested from the orchard at the finance department to his homes in Taluqan and Faryab.
They also allege that he takes bribes from department employees, and that those who refuse face retaliation in the form of transfers, demotions, or forced resignation. One employee has already resigned over pressure from Faruqi, the sources say.
The sources further accuse him of arrogance, saying he treats staff poorly and shows ethnic bias. Most Tajik employees at the Takhar finance department, they claim, have been demoted, transferred or forced out.
According to the sources, Farid Ahmad Ibrahimi, the department’s former tax division manager and an ethnic Tajik, resigned under pressure from Faruqi. He was replaced by Faruqi’s brother-in-law.
The sources add that Sayed Akbar Mutahari, manager of tax assessment and also an ethnic Tajik, was likewise forced to resign. They say the resignation letters cited unrelated reasons rather than the actual pressure behind the departures, apparently to obscure the true cause.
According to the sources, Bilal Osmani, previously with the inspection department and also ethnic Tajik, was transferred to the Hazar Samuch revenue office. Azimullah Khamosh, general manager of coordination and also Tajik, was first moved to the inspection department and later demoted to the Namakab revenue office.
The sources say Jawad Abdiyar, the reporting manager, was demoted to checkpoint duty. Abdul Khabir, an ethnic Tajik, was demoted from grade five to grade six. Aminullah Ghafouri, also Tajik, was transferred from the second tax district’s general management office to Badghis province.
Abdul Salam, general manager of control, was demoted to grade five, the sources say. They add that Habibullah Shirzad, Mir Nesar, Haji Hamidullah, Sibghatullah, Dawood Mohammadi and Akhtar Mohammad Ayoubi, all ethnic Tajiks, were forced to resign, while Qari Zainuddin Shayeq was demoted from grade four to grade five.
Residents of Takhar say they have grown frustrated with the embezzlement of public assets, the seizure of private property and ethnic and linguistic discrimination by Taliban officials in the province, adding that there is no semblance of order or proper administration.
The sources say a Taliban delegation recently traveled to Takhar to review the mass resignations at the finance department in Badakhshan and to examine employee complaints there. They believe Faruqi could be transferred out of Takhar over his mistreatment of staff, discriminatory conduct, and abuse of authority.
These concerns follow an earlier wave of resignations among Taliban finance department staff in Badakhshan. The sources say the finance chief there mistreated and discriminated against employees, eventually forcing them to quit.
Sources have previously reported rising Taliban pressure on former government employees, saying the group has used various pretexts to target them, often along ethnic, linguistic, and regional lines.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
گماشتن نزدیکان و فشار بر کارمندان؛ مستوفی طالبان در تخار چه میکند؟
