Afghan poll season off to a messy start
22 Nov 2013 5:14 AM IST
With Afghanistan’s next presidential election just five months away, authorities say they are facing a possible repeat of the abuses that have discredited the country’s efforts to build a democracy.
They say they have no idea how many voters are really on the rolls because multiple registrations have resulted in nearly twice as many registered voters as eligible ones, said Noor Mohammed Noor, spokesman for the Independent Election Commission.
The registration cards have no expiry date, there is no database to track them, and they are good for any election, he said.
Nader Nadery, head of the non-partisan Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan, said it is too early to charge fraud.
But, he remarked, ‘there is a lot of smoke out there - the level of suspicion is high.’
They say they have no idea how many voters are really on the rolls because multiple registrations have resulted in nearly twice as many registered voters as eligible ones, said Noor Mohammed Noor, spokesman for the Independent Election Commission.
The registration cards have no expiry date, there is no database to track them, and they are good for any election, he said.
Nader Nadery, head of the non-partisan Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan, said it is too early to charge fraud.
But, he remarked, ‘there is a lot of smoke out there - the level of suspicion is high.’
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