Speaker election: Controversial ballot paper invalidated

KABUL’s speaker election was declared as ‘invalid’ through voting on Monday and now lawmakers would to vote for new speaker candidates on Tuesday.

About one and a half months back, after the inauguration of the Wolesi Jirga, lawmakers Mir Rahman Rahmani, Mirwais Yasini, Kamal Naser Osuli and Omar Nasir contested for the speaker post.

However, none could bag enough votes to become speaker of the house and the ballot went to a second round, which was deferred to May 19.

The second round of vote for the two candidates turned controversial and a solution to the impasse is yet to be sought.

Rahmani who needed 124 votes secured 123 in the second round. However, supporters of Rahmani had said that one valid vote of the candidate had been announced as invalid by the temporary speaker of the house while others said the vote was invalid.

Three parliamentary teams, appointed by the lower house for finding a solution to the issue, had been unable to solve the controversy.

Lawmakers today decided to vote for validation or invalidation of the controversial ballot paper cast during the second round of poll.

Today, 90 lawmakers out of 229 present voted in favor of the ballot paper as valid while a majority — 120 — voted it to be considered invalid. Three votes were announced as blank and 16 as invalid in today’s poll.

Alam Sahi, a member of the house and temporary manager of today’s session, said that none of the two candidates, Rahmani and Osuli, were winners of the election.

He said a new election for the speaker of the house would be conducted tomorrow, Tuesday.

mds/ma

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