Game is not over, says Ahmadzai

KABUL (Pajhwok): Reacting to the release of partial returns from last weekends’ presidential vote, hopeful Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai on Sunday said “the game is not over.”

Ahmadzai was shown closely chasing his rival candidate Abdullah Abdullah in the partial official results based on the 10 percent votes counted in 26 provinces.

The early results were announced earlier in the day by the Independent Election Commission, which cautioned the results were not final and could change in future because serious incidents of fraud could affect the final outcome.

Abdullah leads with 41.9 percent; Ghani has 37.6 percent and is in second; and Zalmai Rassoul has 9.8 percent in third position.

Ghani welcomed the early results and said he hoped the IEC would continue to take forward its affairs in accordance with the law.

He said he was in a close contest with Abdullah and each vote had its weight and that ballots in some provinces were yet to be tallied.

“The partial results are like a football game in which players first get warm and then play. The game is not over. The difference is narrow. The IEC should separate fraudulent votes from valid ones as soon as possible so as the scenario becomes clear to the masses.”

Ghani said fraud incidents classed as “A-Priority complaints” were in considerable number in some provinces and hoped the two national electoral institutions would work together on the issue.

The academic wondered if the partial results were based on the 10 percent votes counted then the figures showed only five million people had cast vote in the elections. “It is hoped the election commission will find out that how many people had voted.”

The IEC says around seven million people cast their votes in the elections held on April 5.

Ashraf Ghani said the IEC had been error-free so far and said he hoped the panel would investigate all complaints.

“The election commission is under pressure but it has not committed any wrongdoing that tramples the law. We should be patient and should create the environment of trust.”

Ghani thanked President Hamid Karzai for being neutral throughout the election process and praised security forces for protecting voters and polling stations. He also paid tribute to the media for playing an important role during the polls.

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