Relatives of Rahmon. Who are they and what positions do they hold?

Photo: Internet

“I have only one brother, and he is a tractor driver.” This is how Emomali Rahmon reassured the people of Tajikistan at the dawn of his presidency, promising that he would not allow any relatives to come to power. But three decades later, it is impossible to find a single agency in the power structures where a key position is not held by a relative of Emomali Rahmon. Moreover, the president, along with his family, has completely subordinated and monopolized the country’s economy, turning Tajikistan into his own corporation for enriching a vast insatiable family. So who are the relatives of Emomali Rahmon and what positions do they hold?

Father of Many

Emomali Rahmon is one of the most prolific presidents in the world. He has nine children – seven daughters and two sons. All would be well, but unfortunately for the people of Tajikistan, the president’s brother and sisters, as well as his wife’s relatives, are equally numerous. In total, the number of close relatives of Emomali Rahmon, along with his wife Azizamo’s relatives, reaches approximately 250 – 300 people. All these individuals have received various high positions and unimaginable preferences in their businesses solely due to their familial ties with Emomali Rahmon.

Relatives in Power

The highest-ranking official in the president’s family, besides himself, is his eldest son Rustami Emomali. He simultaneously holds two positions – Chairman of the Upper House of Parliament and Mayor of Dushanbe. In the hierarchy of positions in the state administration system, Rustami Emomali is considered the second person in the republic.

Following him is the president’s second daughter – Ozoda. She is the head of the presidential administration and also holds the position of Head of the Committee for Legal Support of the Constitutional Foundations of the Upper House of Parliament. Ozoda’s husband, Jamolidin Nuraliyev, occupies the position of First Deputy Chairman of the National Bank of Tajikistan.
Davlatali Saidov, Rahmon’s nephew – the son of his maternal aunt, is the First Deputy Prime Minister of the republic.

The president’s fourth daughter – Ruhshona Emomali, was appointed as the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Tajikistan to the United Kingdom last December. Her husband, Shamsullo Sokhibov, in turn, serves as the Trade Representative of Tajikistan in the United Kingdom and is also the owner of the Faroz company. Ruhshona’s brother-in-law, Zainullo Sokhibov, has been appointed by Emomali Rahmon as the director of the Agency for State Procurement of Goods, Works, and Services under the Government of Tajikistan.

The president’s fifth son-in-law – Ashraf Gulov was also appointed by his father-in-law as the ambassador of the republic to Turkey last year. Meanwhile, the father-in-law of the president’s sixth daughter – Zarina has held the position of head of the communications service of Tajikistan for over ten years. During this time, Beg Sabur has led the telecommunications sector of the republic into decline. Zarina herself is the Deputy Chair of the Board of “Orientbank,” which is headed by her maternal uncle – Hasan Sadullaev.

In addition to his children, sons-in-law, and brothers-in-law, Emomali Rahmon generously grants positions to the sons of his brother – Nuriddin Rahmonov, who passed away in 2017. For example, he appointed his brother’s eldest son – Islomiddin as the chairman of the Dangara district, which is Rahmon’s small homeland. Another nephew, Umedjon Rahmon, was appointed head of the prosecutor’s office of the Sino district in the capital.

Even the son-in-law of the late brother of Rahmon has not been left out. Faiziddin Solehzod was appointed by the president as the head of the traffic police department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Khatlon region. The eldest son-in-law of the president’s brother, Bakhram Khalnazarov, was an ambassador to Kazakhstan for many years and in recent years served as the head of the consular services department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan, but was dismissed in December 2018. The third son-in-law of his brother, Safar Jobirzod, was appointed by Rahmon as the head of the capital’s office of the Agency for Combating Corruption.

Now to the brothers of Emomali Rahmon’s wife – Azizamo. The most well-known brother of Azizamo is Hasan Sadullaev. He heads the largest bank in Tajikistan – Orientbank. Hasan is also referred to as Rahmon’s wallet or treasurer. In addition to Orientbank, Hasan Sadullaev owns numerous companies – ZetMobile, Somon Air, “Tavhidbank,” and controls the state company Talco – the largest aluminum plant in Central Asia.

The second brother of Azizamo – Amonullo Sadullaev previously controlled electricity sales issues in the state energy holding “Barki Tojik.” But a couple of years ago, he became the director of the company “Somon Sugd,” through which he manages dozens of enterprises seized by the president’s family in the Sughd region of Tajikistan.

The third brother of Rahmon’s wife – Amirullo Asadullo once headed the Kolkhozabad district and later became the mayor of Bokhtar. Since 2017, as reported in the media, he has been overseeing companies and enterprises in the Khatlon region. All of the aforementioned individuals represent only a small fraction of the relatives of the president of Tajikistan who hold positions in power or have seized or monopolized entire sectors of the republic’s economy due to their familial ties with Emomali Rahmon.