In July 2007 Abdul Sattar Murad, was removed from office by President Hamid Karzai, and his replacement was Ghulam Qawis Abubaker. The ostensible reason for Murad's removal was 'ineffective governance', but it was widely believed by press sources that Murad was removed because of critical comments he made in a Newsweek interview regarding the central government's ineffectiveness in remote areas of the province.[27][28]