MOSCOW — The eldest daughter of Kazakhstan’s outgoing long-time leader was appointed speaker of parliament on Wednesday, fueling speculation that she may succeed her father as president after next year’s election. That was further evidenced in the fact that the Kazakh Senate then voted to appoint Nazarbayev’s eldest daughter, Dariga Nazarbayeva, as the new speaker, making her the second most senior official in the country. Speculation was rife that the president might be grooming his daughter, who has served as deputy prime minister. Yet, Kazakhstan does not have a genuinely popular opposition movement, and whoever is nominated by the ruling party is likely to win. Analyst Dubnov also suggested that the decision to promote his daughter can be seen as an attempt by Nazarbayev to secure the personal safety and business interests of his family.

Source: National Post March 20, 2019 07:01 UTC