Above half of Logar polling stations face security threats

PUL-I-ALAM (Pajhwok): Above half of the polling stations in central Logar province face security threats, the Independent Election Commission (IEC)’s regional office said on Tuesday.

Abdul Rahman Muhabat, IEC head for Logar, told Pajhwok Afghan News there should be 82 polling stations in Logar but their number was to 34 due to insecurity.

According to his information, among every 34 polling stations, ten were under middle and eight under high security threats.

He said they had dispatched electoral materials to Charkh, Kharwar, Barak-i-Barak and Azra districts and said all polling stations would receive the materials a day before the election day.

 He further said 93,000 individuals had registered as voters across the provice and some of them might not vote due insecurity.

“We assure the people of transparent election and we would not allow anyone to interfere in the national process.”

Meanwhile, Sayed Ahmad Agha, a resident of the Charkh district, told Pajhwok that more than half of the district’s residents could not register as voters because of insecurity in their areas.

He added IEC regional office had set up two polling stations in the Charkh district and the distance to the polling stations would keep women from voting.

Hamidullah, a resident of Babos locality of Pul-i-Alam, the provincial capital, said thousands of families lived in the area but polling stations’ number was extremely less for them.

Farhad Akbari, a Wolesi Jirga candidate from Logar province, said the lack of polling centers would deprive of most of the people from voting.

 He said the IEC and security officials should designate dozens of polling stations in order people could cast their votes.

On the other hand, Shamshad Larwai, the governor’s spokesman, said due to insecurity, 48 polling stations in Logar would remain closed.

He said due to high level security threats security forces could not control all the polling stations. He said security forces would maintain security for 34 polling stations where people could cast their votes.

pk/ma