The initiator of the introduction of a single time zone, deputy Yerkin Abil, stated in an interview with journalists that he does not consider the arguments for turning back time to be substantial. In his opinion, it is still too early to draw conclusions. At the same time, the deputy admitted that he may have been mistaken in his initiative.
In autumn 2023, during a plenary session, Mazhilis deputy Yerkin Abil proposed switching Kazakhstan to a single time zone. Since March 2024, the country has been living under the new time, but almost immediately many compatriots were unhappy with these changes.
In an interview with journalists from Taspanews, the Mazhilis member noted that he continues to insist that the transition to a single time zone was the right decision, the merits of which Kazakhstani residents will be able to assess no earlier than autumn. At the same time, Yerkin Abil also acknowledges the possibility that he may be wrong.
"To refute or confirm it, we need statistics, we need time. It is impossible to draw conclusions in two months. I admit that I could have been mistaken...", the deputy admitted.
From a medical point of view, Yerkin Abil believes that the emerging health problems that residents of the country complain about are related to solar activity. Therefore, it is too early to say that the cause of Kazakhstani citizens' ailments lies in the change of time zone.
The argument that because of the single time zone people began to pay more for electricity, the Mazhilis member also considers unfounded. In his opinion, tariff increases played a greater role in electricity costs.
Earlier, a number of experts concluded that the introduction of a single time zone in Kazakhstan negatively affects people's mental and physical state. The president of the Kazakhstan Association of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, psychologist Yevgeniy Yan, told the editorial board of the FBRK about this.
During the conversation between Taspanews journalists and Yerkin Abil, mention was also made of Yevgeniy Yan's interview with leading American chronobiologist Mary Carskadon, who criticised Kazakhstan's transition to a single time zone. The deputy stated that he partially agrees with the opinion of the foreign expert.
"One of the authors of the petition spoke with the American researcher. I was interested, so I watched that conversation. In principle, she repeated our point of view. That midnight should be in the middle of the dark time of day", the Mazhilis member noted.
Yerkin Abil also stated that he is familiar with the petition to abolish the single time zone and does not see any substantial arguments in it to turn back the clocks. According to the deputy, final conclusions about how correct the decision to switch to a single time zone was can be drawn a year after the transition, meaning in spring 2025.