Kazakhstan to introduce vice president position, Tokayev says

Tengrinews.kz — Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has announced that Kazakhstan will introduce the position of vice president. The President made the statement while speaking at a session of the National Kurultai.

“There is a saying among our people: everything has its time. I believe that this time has come. Today, at the final session of the National Kurultai, I would like to present an important new proposal. This initiative will organically complete the political system that we have been methodically building over several years,” Tokayev said.

According to the President, the proposal involves establishing the institution of vice president of the Republic of Kazakhstan and enshrining it in the Constitution. The vice president would be appointed by the President with the consent of Parliament by a simple majority vote. The scope of the vice president’s powers would be determined by the Head of State.

It is expected that, on the President’s instructions, the vice president would:

• represent the Republic of Kazakhstan at international forums and negotiations with foreign delegations;
• represent the President in Parliament;
• engage with domestic and international public, political, scientific, cultural, and educational organizations;
• carry out other tasks assigned by the President.

Tokayev emphasized that the key provisions defining the vice president’s official functions should be reflected directly in the Constitution.

“As you know, the position of vice president exists in a number of countries. In our case, establishing this role will stabilize the system of state governance and bring final clarity to the hierarchy of power,” the President said.

He stressed that this constitutional innovation does not weaken the institution of presidential power.

“On the contrary, the presidency remains the central institution in the state system. I am convinced that Kazakhstan will continue to develop successfully as a presidential republic. We should not abandon this proven political model, especially given that international experience strongly supports this choice,” Tokayev concluded.

The fifth session of the National Kurultai is currently taking place in Kyzylorda. As previously announced by Presidential Press Secretary Ruslan Zheldibay, President Tokayev is expected to outline the key directions of Kazakhstan’s future development and address pressing social issues during his speech.

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