Afghanistan Times
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By Akhtar M. Nikzad-KABUL: The Special Electoral Reform Commission (SERC) kicked off work on Wednesday to bring necessary reforms in the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and Independent Electoral Complaints Commission (IECC) aimed at rebuilding public trust over the country’s electoral system.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Abdullah Abdullah officially inaugurated the reforms body and urged all 14 members of the Special Electoral Reform Commission to work honestly and safeguard the national interests.
Abdullah said that reforms in the electoral system are need of the hour because people are expecting transparent parliamentary election.
He said that in the past 13 years, the presidential elections in Afghanistan proved that the electoral bodies need reforms to nurture democracy in the country.
“The current electoral system requires improvement and without reforms people will never trust elections and democracy in the country,” the CEO quipped.
“Determining date of parliamentary election and bringing reforms are your main responsibilities. Your inability to bring reforms in the electoral bodies will result in irreparable damages and hurt national interests,” he said to the SERC members.
He admired the international community for promising to support the reforms in electoral bodies and said that role of one of the members of the reform commission, representing the UN mission in Afghanistan, would be to provide advice and technical support.
According to him, work of the SERC would not be symbolic but would be taken very seriously.
