During a session of the Jogorku Kenesh (Kyrgyzstan’s Parliament) on December 18, President Sadyr Japarov explained his decision to remove former Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov from office.
According to the president, the move aimed to prevent a conflict of interest in connection with a criminal investigation into the leadership of the State Tax Service (STS).
“We were deeply disheartened by negative developments within the tax system. Fraud involving excise stamps came to light. This area was under Akylbek Usenbekovich’s supervision, so the unlawful actions could have been stopped. I had to remove him from office due to the ongoing investigation into the leadership of the STS to eliminate any conflict of interest,” 24.kg quoted the president as saying.
Akylbek Japarov stepped down as head of the Cabinet on December 16 after serving three years in the role. Earlier, on December 3, four heads of departments within the State Tax Service and approximately 30 staff members were detained in Bishkek on corruption charges. According to Kamchybek Tashiev, head of the State Committee for National Security (SCNS), these officials orchestrated a corruption scheme that caused 3.2 billion soms ($36.8 million) in losses to the state budget.
The head of the State Tax Service, Altynbek Abduvapov, was arrested, and his position was filled by Kydykbek Kydyrov. However, the SCNS has already raised concerns about Kydyrov’s activities.
On December 18, Japarov signed a decree appointing Adylbek Kasymaliev, the head of the Presidential Administration, as Prime Minister.
Adylbek Kasymaliev was born in 1960 in the Issyk-Kul region. He holds a degree in economics from the Leningrad Institute of Finance and Economics. He began his career at the Institute of Economics under Kyrgyzstan’s State Planning Committee before transitioning to government roles. Kasymaliev previously led the State Tax Service and served as Deputy Minister of Economy. From 2015 to 2018, he was the Minister of Finance. In 2022, he served as the First Deputy Chairman of the Government. On December 16, 2024, he was appointed Acting Prime Minister.
