BISHKEK (TCA) — Kyrgyzstan’s President Sooronbai Jeenbekov has signed a decree accepting the resignation of the Government of Prime Minister Sapar Isakov.
Earlier today, the Kyrgyz parliament passed a no-confidence motion against the Government of Isakov.
The vote, which passed with 105 votes out of 120, was initiated by a group of opposition lawmakers, in what is seen as another sign of tension between Jeenbekov, who was sworn in in November, and his predecessor, Almazbek Atambayev, RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service reports.
Atambayev kept a low profile for several months after leaving office in November 2017, but he has publicly criticized Jeenbekov on several occasions following his election as head of the ruling Social Democratic Party on March 31.
Isakov, 39, is a close ally of Atambayev and took over the Kyrgyz Government in August.
Earlier this month, President Jeenbekov dismissed Abdil Segizbaev, the chief of the State Committee for National Security, and Prosecutor-General Indira Joldubaeva, who are also Atambayev allies and had long been criticized for a crackdown on opposition politicians and independent journalists.
Atambayev, who now chairs the Social Democratic Party, the leader of a ruling parliamentary coalition, had backed Jeenbekov in the presidential election but started criticizing him this month in a sign of a rift between the two.
The resignation of Prime Minister Isakov is a conventional victory of President Jeenbekov, political scientist Medet Tyulegenov told 24.kg news agency.
“This shows that the incumbent head of state has some control over the Parliament and there is a consolidation of power around his nominees,” Tyulegenov said.
