Azerbaijani MP: Opposition unity is impossible

In your opinion, which party or movement is more likely to win the upcoming parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan?

It believe that ruling New Azerbaijan Party will win the upcoming parliamentary elections because over the last five years since the previous parliamentary elections no party or movement that can compete with the ruling party has appeared. Instead of serious work on the mistakes, representatives of the radical opposition once again show a tendency to disassembly, search for agents of influence on their own members further weakening already impossibly weak support the radical opposition enjoys in society.

In the end, I think representatives of the radical opposition will have even fewer seats than were five years ago in the upcoming parliamentary elections. At the same time, I do not exclude that a greater number of independent candidates will win in the current parliamentary elections. This will benefit the Azerbaijani society. For, in my opinion, in the current parliament there are many independents, who were able to have their say in the work of the Milli Majlis.

In your opinion, may the opposition take a unified action for the upcoming parliamentary elections on the backdrop of a tendency to disassembly?

Frankly, because of regular, ongoing squabbles within some opposition parties, I doubt its ability to reach comprehensive unity which was so often promised but not implemented so far.

Currently, representatives of the Musavat party criticize leader of the Liberal Party of Azerbaijan Lala Shovkat Hajiyeva in an unethical manner. In such circumstances, it is impossible to expect the opposition to unite.

You said  the opposition unity seems to be impossible. Musavat Party leader Isa Gambar once also said it is impossible for which he was immediately criticized. What is the reason for this criticism?

Isa Gambar have once been in union with various units and associations whom he now accuses of "working" for various centers of power. It arises a reasonable question: Weren’t these politicians "working" for someone when Musavat leader was in a political union with them?

In addition, Isa Gambar, who criticizes his colleagues from the opposition and accuses them of “working” for various centers of power, does not want to say for what forces he himself is working. In order to have the moral right to criticize someone, you need to be very decent person. This is an axiom.

I say this in order to emphasize that Isa Gambar acts upon West’s order. I am convinced that if the West orders Isa Gambar to unite with Lala Shovket, he will do so without hesitation. The same thing will happen to the position of Isa Gambar in terms of defining policy of the Musavat party in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

Meanwhile, Isa Gambar had openly declared he will leave his post as Musavat leader in 2010. In your opinion, will his resignation cause changes in state of the domestic opposition?

To begin with, I do not believe in sincerity of Isa Gambar’s statement that he will resign. The same persons have ruled the Musavat Party since 1992. We have seen no new faces since then. If Isa Gambar really leaves the post of the Musavat leader, this will lead to significant improvements both within the party and entire domestic opposition.

A. Hasanov