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Kazakhstanâ€™s Constitutional Council rejects proposed referendum on extending Nursultan Nazarbayev’s presidential term to 2020

31 January 2011 07:42 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. The Constitutional Council of Kazakhstan has declared unlawful a proposed referendum on extending Nursultan Nazarbayev’s presidential term to 2020, the council’s chairman said on Monday, APA reports quoting RIA Novosti.

"A law on the introduction of amendments to the Kazakh constitution, which has been recognized as being against the Kazakh constitution, cannot be signed and put into effect," chairman Igor Rogov said.

"In line with the constitution, the president has the right to file an objection against a Constitutional Council’s decision within a month. Thus, the last word on the referendum rests with the head of state," he added.

Earlier in the month, the Kazakh parliament voted unanimously in favor of holding a referendum to extend Nazarbayev’s time in office until 2020, bypassing elections due in 2012.

Nazarbayev, who has ruled the Central Asian state since the collapse of the Soviet Union, vetoed parliament’s original call for a referendum, but the recent vote overrode his objections.