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KABUL: Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah expressed concerns over uncertainty in the independent election commissions, emphasizing that appointing of the electoral commissioners was government’s priority.
“Election should be seriously preserved, the government’s priority is to appoint the electoral commissioners,” Abdullah told the council of ministers’ weekly meeting on Monday.
The remarks come as the independent election commission and independent electoral complaints commission had earlier expressed concerns over lack of commissioners, calling it a serious problem in before running of the July presidential elections.
President Ashraf Ghani dismissed the electoral commissioners two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, the president’s office says that the new electoral commissioners would start their jobs next week.
President’s Spokesman Haroon Chakhansuri said that more than 84 people have applied for electoral commissioners.
According to the election law, the president would appoint 13 people as commissioners and two others as the election commission secretaries.
Meanwhile, some electoral watchdogs say that the delay in appointing of electoral commissioners would not only affect presidential elections, but the social justice would be affected as well.
“Delay in appointing of electoral commissioners would make the process longer and the commissions can’t make timetable that eventually the government would face criticisms,” said Yousuf Rashid, head of Free and Fair Election Forum of Afghanistan (FEFA).
He said that the government should try to prevent such problems that can pave the ground for the political events and affect nation’s destination.
