KABUL, Dec 23: The Loya Jirga entered its third and last phase on Tuesday with supporters and opponents of presidential system locked in intense lobbying to swing the balance in their favour ahead of a crucial open session debate on Thursday.

While the Loya Jirga delegates continued to air their grievances for the second day running, the 38-member- reconciliation committee began discussions on recommendations and amendments.

“The reconciliation committee has completed its work,” the spokesperson for the Loya Jirga, Safia Siddiqi, said.

She said the committee would sit again on Wednesday and prepare a report on amendments suggested in the 162-article draft constitution.

“(They are) neither good nor bad,” she remarked when asked about the changes sought by delegates in the draft constitution. She declined to discuss what changes but disclosed that delegates had asked major amendments in the draft constitution.

Delegates had earlier claimed majority of them favoured presidential form of government but opponents to the system spearheaded by the Northern Alliance wanted a parliamentary system with more powers to the parliament.

Safia acknowledged the government and opponents of the presidential system were locked in intense lobbying to swing the balance in their favour.

A delegate, who asked not to be named, however, claimed the government was willing to concede some ground to former mujahideen groups within the Loya Jirga by accepting a bigger role for Shariat to win their support for the presidential system.

“An understanding has been reached,” the delegate said, adding that the government had also given in to demand for the establishment of a watchdog body to oversee the implementation of laws. This, however, could not be confirmed from other sources.

The presidential camp, however, received a jolt when Mr Karzai’s top security advisor Gen Abdur Rashid Dostum refused to back the presidential system and backed the demand for more powers to parliament. Gen Dostum, while talking with reporters on Tuesday, reiterated his assertion, saying: “We need to strengthen parliament,” he said.

Delegates, supporting President Karzai, were confident they would get enough votes to ratify the draft constitution without changing its character.

There were speculations that the Jamiat-i-Islami of former president Prof Burhanuddin Rabbani, one of the groups opposed to more powers to the president, would not sign the document in protest.

“We will like to achieve a consensus but under the circumstances it looks difficult,” conceded a delegate supporting Karzai.

Meanwhile, delegates consumed the whole day Tuesday putting across their views and complaints to cabinet ministers. Most complained about war-lordism, lack of security and reconstruction work in their respective areas.

A delegate from Jauzjan area complained that because of lack of security most of the internally-displaced people were reluctant to return to the northern Afghan province.

“There are worlords there. People are reluctant to go back and it will not be fair if they are not able to vote in the first-ever elections next year,” Gul Mohammad Pewan told the Loya Jirga.

Mr Saifullah from the Zabul province demanded that people from his native province captured during the campaign against the Taliban should be released or transferred from Shiberghan jail to a central government detention center.

While most delegates called for national unity amongst the Afghans, Pakistan came in for some criticism from some delegates.

A delegate from eastern province of Kunar demanded a ban on dealing in Pakistani currency in the border region.