Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, the President of Afghanistan has banned 68 officials and employees of the Ministry of Finance from leaving the country.

While the judiciary is the only authority to issue an exit ban, officials and employees of the Ministry of Finance have been banned from leaving the country, according to a letter from the National Directorate of Security.

In an unprecedented move, 68 officials and employees of the Ministry of Finance have been banned from leaving the country.

The names of the Financial, Administrative and Customs Revenue Department’s deputies, the secretariat head of the ministry, some general managers and heads of customs, and a number of senior employees of the Ministry of Finance are included in the list; the ban has listed more of key figures in customs and revenue-generating sectors.

"Exit ban of a large number of employees of the Ministry of Finance, especially the customs sector, seems dramatic. It shows the government’s failure in bringing reforms in this part," said Seyed Ekram Afzali, head of Afghanistan's Integrity Watch.

It is said that these officials and employees of the Ministry of Finance have been banned from leaving the country in connection with corruption. But nothing has been said about the charges against them.

The Ministry of Finance, whose main body is banned from leaving the country, is unaware of the ban.

"When there is a violation, it should be handed over to the judiciary, and it is not enough to just ban it," said Sayed Azim Kabarzani, deputy chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee of the Lower House.

The letter, which has been made public, is from the National Directorate of Security. It states that officials and employees of the Ministry of Finance have been banned from leaving the country.

However, the judiciary is the only authority that can ban people from leaving the country.

"No other institution, including the presidential office, security agencies, and intelligence agencies, has the authority to ban nationals," said Wahid Farzaei, a member of the Union of Lawyers.

The law stipulates that an exit ban will be imposed after the indictment is filed with the Attorney General's Office, but the prosecutor's office says no charges have been filed against those who have been banned from leaving the country.

Abdul Qadir Jailani, the former head of public relations at the Ministry of Finance, said: "These actions of the government are more of propaganda. There still are extortion, corruption, and embezzlement in most departments.”

A letter banning the departure of some officials and employees of the Ministry of Finance was sent to Hamid Karzai Airport five days ago. In the long run, neither the reason for this decision nor the prosecutor's office has been notified of it.