Afghanistan Times
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The aggravating post-election crisis in the wake of opposition to election results has left Afghans jaw-dropped and worried. The election conundrum is symbolic of the fact that Afghanistan is gradually being stripped off all the features characterizing a sovereign state as we are witnessing a bedlam across the country at the hands of Afghan leaders and politicians. As soon as the Independent Election Commission (IEC) announced the final election results late on Tuesday, declaring Ashraf Ghani as the President of Afghanistan, the bitter election dispute spawned as Abdullah Abdullah rejected the election results and claimed victory, vowing to establish an inclusive government soon. In a recent development of events, Stability and Partnership team’s supporters stormed the provincial governor’s office in the northern Sar-i-Pul province and ousted the sitting governor. Moreover, a new governor has been introduced in his place by Abdullah as part of his recent resolves to form a parallel government and appoint governors. This is while trouble is further brewing as the international community has also adopted a tight-lipped approach in this regard thus far. Only a handful of international partners congratulated the controversy-mired election winners while the US refrained from showing its stance as well. The US secretary of State Mike Pompeo said his country has been following the results of the Afghan presidential elections very closely, adding, “We want to make sure that we’ve got it exactly right, and we’ll make a statement on that before too terribly long.” Part of the reason for this reluctance is that the global village has lost confidence in the election process and wants no part of it. However, a bitter electoral gridlock and attempts to create parallel governments are not the way to go about coping with this situation. Moreover, resorting to force or any other unlawful means in order to engage in a tug-of-war of replacing government officials also affects the peace process negatively. It should be heeded that a violent phase would follow hard on the heels of the ongoing jousting for power from the Afghan politicos, who must contemplate that where is our country heading? The only way to salvage the situation is by exercising restraint and addressing the grievances through dialogue while acting in compliance with the constitutional order. Nonetheless, based on past experiences, the recipe of a reconciliation government and a foreign interference which flies in the face of the Constitution isn’t feasible. Therefore, an understanding should be reached among the prominent politicians to get Afghans out of the current crisis and help the peace negotiations rather than being a factor in jeopardizing it. If the current situation continues, we will inevitably arrive at an insurmountable predicament that would have been stoked up by the egos and personal interests of these same politicos.
